Shattered Mind: Control
by Krimson Rogue
Summary: In Memoria, each step brings them closer to Kuja, as well as Death's door! Can Trevor and Kaiten evade their fate long enough to save the world?
1. Breaking Down the Front Door

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's notes: Well, here we are. The FINAL book of the Shattered Mind Saga.

I honestly never expected the story to carry on this far or for this long. It's truly a testament to everything Final Fantasy, as well as my growing ego. XD I'd like to think that this book could act as a kind of transition, as I wrap this up and move more into professional writing, putting my own original story ideas out there for everyone to enjoy. I may end up getting rather nostalgic as this series concludes, but then again, after this long, I think I've earned it. :P

Hope you all enjoy! And don't forget to buy Micro God, on sale in March for all ereaders for only 99 cents! ^^ Details in my profile.

Chapter 1- Breaking Down the Front Door!

XXXXXXXX

"Does the water here ever stay still?"

"Well, no. Water flows, doesn't it?"

"The water of Bran Bal was always still…"

I laid down on a walkway in the Black Mage village under the shining sun. The air was warm and it was a perfect summer day. My feet dangled inches over the water, with the occasional splash in the stream below. We had delivered the Genomes from Terra to the Black Mage Village. Mr. 288, the village leader, was hesitant about the newcomers at first, but Vivi was able to convince him otherwise.

The Genomes were a lot like the Black Mages. They were not fully aware of their surroundings and they didn't have a proper understanding of the world. They were like children gaining sentience. In a way, the Black Mages were further along and would make good teachers for the Genomes. What the Black Mages didn't understand would just drive some of them to learn more. At least, as long as their patience with the Genomes' constant questioning held up.

"Hey, did you know that time flows, just like water?" the Black Mage taught.

"So, water and time both flow in Gaia?" the Genome asked, still not quite getting it.

I just smirked at the both of them, then took a deep breath, enjoying the sunny day. It was strange. Ever since we got back from Terra and most of the others accepted me back, everything had been remarkably easier. I didn't have to hide what had happened to me anymore. A weight had been lifted from my shoulders and I could just have fun again, like when I had just arrived to Gaia.

I still hadn't told them about Kaiten… but my stomach turned into a knot as I remembered why. I looked down my shirt for the tenth time that day to see the spreading bruise creeping up my chest. Soon enough, that secret wouldn't matter at all. I patted my shirt back down, unable to feel anything along the dying skin.

I only had enough time to do the little good I could against Kuja. Even if I couldn't finish the trip through Memoria, I could still help the others on their way inside. That would be my legacy.

"Trevor? You awake?"

I barely cracked my eye open and saw Zidane walking towards me. I raised my hand in a small wave, then set it back down on my stomach. I still couldn't feel anything there.

"We're going to have to head out soon," Zidane said, taking a seat next to me. "The Genomes are settling in nicely, and Vivi said the Black Mages are already working on expanding the village."

"Just a few more minutes?" I said. "I haven't had a chance to rest like this in… weeks, at least."

"Yeah. None of us have."

I sighed. "I finally have five minutes that I can pretend everything's perfect. When I was in college, I would just hit a pub with my friends, or we'd just hang out. But I never got to do this. Just relax in a forest on a warm day. I missed days like this."

In all truth, I hadn't relaxed like this ever since I used to hang out with Nicole, before Shadow's death. I brushed the thought out of my mind. I didn't need to Trance right here and now.

"It couldn't have been easy for you," Zidane said, sliding back on his arms and looking up into the treeline. "Especially with that experiment you never told us about."

"I said I was sorry for that!"

Zidane chuckled. "I know. And I get it. You didn't want us to worry about you. But we will worry about you, because you're our friend. Got it?"

I glanced up at him through the corner of my eye. I would have asked if he stole that quote from a Hallmark card, but that joke wouldn't have made any sense to him. Instead, all I said was, "Got it."

"Good. Now I think we should head out. We need to meet the others at the front of the village."

Zidane stood and took one more breath of fresh air. I lazily held my arm up. He got the signal and grabbed hold of my arm, giving me a hand up. He practically had to drag me along until I slipped my feet underneath myself. Zidane made sure to give me a slap on the shoulder for that one and we shared a laugh. The world was doomed and we could very easily fail in saving it, and all I could think about was how good it was to have friends.

Life was strange.

Dagger and Steiner were the only ones waiting at the front plaza of the village. When we first arrived, the Genomes stood here in confusion. It wasn't until several Black Mages took them deeper into the village for tutelage. The Genomes were already being taught the ways of the world and with patience could grow, even without souls. Perhaps they could adapt and breed, forming their own, odd, but unique society.

"Your Highness, is this really what you wish?" Steiner asked.

"What are you talking about?" Dagger asked without turning to face the knight.

"If what Zidane and Trevor tell us is true, Kuja must have done something in the Iifa Tree to cover the world in mist. Do you not think it wise to consult Regent Cid before we investigate?"

"What's going on?" Zidane asked as the two of us arrived and joined the fray.

"We're simply discussing our next move," Steiner explained. "I think we should ask the nations of the Mist Continent for assistance."

"But the reappearance of the mist is bound to most people on edge!" Dagger said. "If we go to Uncle Cid for aid, we'll just cause a panic!"

"I agree with Steiner," I said. "We don't know what we're getting into. How can we? If we go in with backup, we have a stronger chance of success." Having knowledge of what we were getting into, I knew we would need that backup, and badly.

"But what could happen if Kuja launches an attack?" Dagger pointed out. "If we take all of Lindblum and Alexandria's armies away from the Mist Continent, and Kuja attacks, he could kill thousands of innocent people."

"I think Dagger may have a point," Zidane said. "We've been able to fend for ourselves so far and we have the Invincible now. You've seen what that thing can do. We should be fine."

"Ugh, fine," I said. "I won't push the point, but we should still get supplies in Lindblum. I have a buddy I want to see. He might be able to give us a hand."

"That's not a bad idea," Zidane said. "And we should probably stop by Alexandria too so we can give Beatrix an update."

"She's a strong woman," Steiner said proudly. "She'll be able to defend Alexandria while we're gone."

"You don't even stand a chance."

Our small meeting was interrupted by Mikoto, Zidane's "little sister", as she wandered in from the village. Zidane had given us a basic introduction to her while we were flying to the Black Mage Village, but she was cold and callous. She didn't even try to make new friends and as soon as we landed in the village, she wandered off on her own, shrugging off all the friendly Black Mages. Her attitude was in serious need of adjustment, but her entire planet had just been destroyed, so none of us were about to discipline her.

"You saw Kuja's power!" Mikoto said. "He destroyed an entire world by himself! You don't even have a million in one chance of defeating him! You'll all die!"

There was an awkward moment between the four of us at first. I wasn't about to give her lip since I wasn't that guy anymore. Underneath her tough exterior, Mikoto really was just trying to hold it together. She was scared, felt alone, and on an alien planet that she had been bred to destroy one day. Anyone would feel out of place in her shoes.

"Interesting," Mr. 288 said, walking in on our conversation from the nearest walkway. "This girl talks much more than the other Genomes."

"Doesn't she?" Zidane agreed with a grin. "She's a bit cynical, but take good care of her, will ya?"

"Of course," Mr. 288 nodded. He turned to Mikoto and asked, "Do you want us to give you a name? Some of the other Genomes have asked us to name them."

"Her name is Mikoto," Zidane said. "She's kinda like my little sister."

Mikoto's eyes widened and her face flushed. She looked like a strawberry until she crossed her arms and turned away angrily.

"Mikoto!" Zidane called out. "Listen to your big brother and make some friends, okay?"

"How… how absurd!" Mikoto said, too embarrassed to face us.

"We might be desperate insects to Kuja, but we'll show you how powerful we can be."

"'Even a fly lives for a day'," Steiner quoted.

"I don't think that's what Zidane meant," Dagger said.

I just smiled. Kaiten and I were the super soldier created to kill Kuja. With these guys at my back, we stood a reasonable chance of winning and saving the world once and for all!

…Assuming I could live long enough to see that day…

"Alright!" Zidane said. "Let's get the others. We need to get our supplies, and then it's off to the Iifa Tree!"

XXXXXXXX

Zidane, once again assuming the role as leader, piloted the Invincible. We had made a quick stop in Burmecia, where the native people were just starting to rebuild. Since Cleyra wasn't destroyed, the king led his people back and the city was beginning to look habitable again, although very wet. We dropped Freya and Amarant off there first so they could gather supplies. We had all decided to gather supplies in small amounts from the three great kingdoms, rather than all from Lindblum or Alexandria. We would need a lot and gathering smaller amounts from three cities would keep us inconspicuous.

Vivi, Eiko and I were dropped off in Lindblum next. Eiko and Vivi stayed together and headed for the Business District. I went there as well, but where they went off to gather potions, I went to see an old friend.

"Knock, knock!" I said with my hands in my pockets as I walked into Wayne's Synth Shop. "Anyone here?"

"One second!" a familiar voice called out. I leaned on the front desk and waited for Wayne to come out of his back room, but I was startled when I heard the enormous _BANG_! It was followed by two more matching sounds ringing out. I ran out into the back and swung around the corner to investigate.

Immediately in the back room, I recognized Wayne standing next to Dante. They were standing in the middle of the lengthy room, aiming a gun down range at a hay pile marked with a large red dot in the center. They both turned and saw me leaning against the wall, just glad that nothing was wrong.

"Trevor!" Dante called out. The first thing I noticed was that he was out of his bandages. "Hey man! How's it going?"

"Not bad," I said. "Is everything alright?"

"Perfectly fine," Wayne said calmly. "Dante healed up enough to remove his bandages, so he wanted to come over and practice."

"Right, right," I said. "I just thought something blew up back here."

"Really?" Dante asked. "Don't you recognize a gunshot when you hear it?"

"Sorry, I was taken by surprise."

"That's enough of that," Wayne said, taking the revolver out of Dante's hands and making sure that it was empty. "You don't want to push yourself too hard. Your arm is still fragile."

"Oh come on!" Dante complained. "I've only shot three chambers!"

"That's plenty. This thing shakes your arms a lot after all." Wayne led us to the front desk where he placed the revolver into a drawer for safekeeping. "So, Trevor, what brings you around here?"

"Supply run," I said. I pulled out my short swords and placed them on the table. "We're going into combat again and I need these updated."

Wayne grabbed one of the short swords and took a quick look at it, turning it over in his hand. After a moment, he nodded. "Yeah, I think I can do something with this. A noble came in a few days ago with a shipment of orichalcum. He wanted me to make a broadsword for him out of it entirely. Isn't that idiotic?"

I kept a stone face and simply agreed. "Yes."

Wayne could instantly tell that I didn't understand. "Orichalcum is an alloy, partially composed of gold. The metal wouldn't be strong enough to support its own weight and the entire blade would bend like a piece of pasta. So, I gave him a regular blade and only coated it in orichalcum and kept the rest of the shipment. However, it does have some good magical properties. I can have some heated and fit it into your blades' fullers in… say two hours?"

"That sounds great," I said. "Thanks Wayne. How much do I owe you?"

"Nothing," he said seriously. "The mist came back. I don't know what you did on your last trip, but I believe the world is in trouble. If you really are saving the world, then you'll need to conserve your supplies and your money."

I was surprised, but I appreciated the support. "Wow, thanks Wayne."

"Don't mention it."

Wayne walked to the furnace, adding a shovel of charcoal to increase the flames, then left for the back room for his supply of orichalcum. I just leaned on the front desk with Dante at my side. There was a heavy moment of silence as Dante and I just stared at the people in the streets. They were rushing about, gathering supplies, some even starting to panic. The reappearance of the mist could easily be hailed as some new hell visiting Gaia.

In a way, they were right.

"So, what ended up happening?" Dante asked. "You said you were heading to some new planet to stop Kuja, right? Did you get him this time?"

"Kuja?" I repeated slowly. "Uh… not exactly…"

"Did he get away again?"

"He may have… gotten a huge powerup, and… he may be responsible for all the mist reappearing."

"…Wow. You really suck at this."

"Hey, shut up!" I defended. "We still managed to steal his airship from him. As soon as we got all the supplies we need, we're going to launch an attack on him at the Iifa Tree."

"An attack? Is that wise? Especially if he can do something like bring the mist back?"

"We don't really have a choice," I pointed out. "If we don't, Kuja's just going to destroy everything. He has the power for it now."

"That's…that's insane!" Dante shouted. "How can you even stop him?"

"Those short swords will help," I said. "And the others have been chasing Kuja as long as I have. We have a shot at it."

"Not enough of one," Dante said, walking into the back of the room. "I'm getting my gun and coming with you!"

"Dante!" I called after him. As awesome as it would be to have Dante fighting alongside me once again, he wasn't in any shape to fight. I leapt up from the table and grabbed him by the wrist. "Dante, stop! You can't come along! You don't know what you're getting into!"

"And you do?" he demanded. "You just said that Kuja is strong enough to destroy the world."

"I've been tracking him for a while and I know what to expect. You nearly died the last time we fought together! I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I got you killed!"

"So I'm not allowed to risk my life, but you are?" he shouted, throwing my hand off of his wrist. "You're a damn hypocrite!"

"You only just now got back to using a gun! We're likely going to be running for our lives. You're not in shape for this. I'm sorry Dante."

"Screw you!" he yelled. He pushed by me and left in a huff. I didn't think he would take the rejection so personally. I was just trying to keep him safe. Why couldn't he see that?

"Where's he going?" Wayne asked as he walked back with an ugly chunk of golden rock. That must have been his orichalcum supply.

"Just for a walk, I guess," I sighed. I took a seat at the front desk and just rested my head as Wayne went to work.

XXXXXXXX

"Selfish bastard," Dante complained. "Won't let a buddy watch his back. He's gonna get himself killed!"

Dante wandered the streets of the rebuilding Lindblum. It had been weeks since the Black Mage Army had assaulted the city and reduced it to a flicker of its former glory. The citizens had worked together feverishly to restore the various districts to health. Distraught and alone for the moment, Dante found himself walking towards the air cab station. He had been spending so much time with Wayne that he hadn't even been to his apartment in over a month. It was worth a look.

The air cab ride gave Dante a comforting look over the city as they flew. There were still holes in roofs, collapsed buildings and streets charred black from fire, however, it was much better than it had been the night Dante traveled with Trevor to the castle. The night Dante nearly died.

The engineer held onto his chest. The sword that pierced his chest had severed an artery in his heart. If Wayne hadn't shown up at that exact moment with those potions, Dante wouldn't have lived. The thought scared him. Even after a month of physical therapy and healing, he could still feel the pain of the sword lancing through him. Maybe Trevor had a point. Maybe Dante wasn't ready for intense combat, but he still felt like he had to do something.

The air cab landed at the Industrial District with a sudden halt. He tossed his fare into the front seat and walked out of the station.

The air in the Industrial District was mostly clear, but there was a thin layer of soot rising from the chimneys of newly opened factories. It was good being back in his home district. It had been cleaned up and looked as productive as ever. Dante felt a pang of regret that he hadn't visited his own workshop in so long. If it weren't for his injuries, he probably would have been able to start on his next design.

Engineers, architects and designers walked about, some carrying new blueprints while others walked off for their lunch break. Dante used to be amongst them. Now he felt like some cripple who couldn't even use his own tools. It wasn't fair! It was such bullshit! It was—

"Oof!"

Dante had lost himself in thought and didn't see the large man standing in front of him. He stepped backwards, embarrassed to face the man and his two shady looking cohorts. One cohort was a man with a low-set headband that blocked his eyes. The second wore a green outfit with several belts about him and a pale bandana.

"Uh, sorry," Dante said. "I wasn't paying attention."

But the large man just chuckled, patting his rotund gut. "Bwahaha, it's fine little feller," he said. "My boys and I were jus' headin' back home anyways."

"Oh, uh, good," Dante said awkwardly, staring at the man. There was something familiar about this trio. Dante looked for a moment longer, until he remembered a rumor he heard once before.

"Hey, aren't you guys Tantalus?" he asked. "That thieves guild?"

"Thieves? Us?" the large man repeated. "Naw. We're Tantalus, sure, but we're no thieves. We're actors."

"Maybe you recognize us from our performance of 'May I Be Your Canary?'" the man in the headband asked. "Marcus here played the lead."

"Geez, shut up Blank," Marcus said, using his hand to cover what little of his face the bandana didn't.

"No, I've heard enough rumors," Dante said. "You're Baku, right? The leader of the thieves guild?"

"I'm Baku," the large man said, crossing his arms defiantly. "But I ain't no thief!"

Dante just shook his head. These guys being thieves was irrelevant. What was important was the connections they had.

"I heard that you guys can get an audience with the Regent," Dante asked. "Is that true?"

Baku stood silently, sizing Dante up and putting on as serious an appearance as he had ever before. "Perhaps I can," he finally said. "What's it to you?"

XXXXXXXX

In just a short time, we were ready for our assault.

Potions, supplies, and even new weapons after a stop in Daguerreo now gave us a better fighting chance. Walking through the cabin of the Invincible, I saw Freya practicing with her new polearm, while Amarant adjusted his new clawed gauntlets. I took another look at my upgraded short swords as I walked.

The golden fuller now added weight, going against its originally intended design. The gold alloy that shined in the middle of the orange blade earned them the name, the Twin Tigers. And Wayne wasn't kidding when he said these amplify magical abilities. I tried summoning a Demon Saber right after I got them and I nearly poked a hole in his roof. Even the smallest stream of energy flowed through these blades like a waterfall. I couldn't wait to test it out in live combat.

"_Everyone! Can you hear me?_" Zidane called over the newly discovered intercom system. "_We're getting close to the Iifa Tree! Get in place and get ready for anything Kuja throws at us!_"

That was my cue. I climbed the steps up to the bridge, sheathing my blade as I walked through the long doorway. Inside, Zidane stood at the Ship's Heart, as we came to calling the podium where we could communicate with it and give it our commands. Dagger stood by his side, resting a hand on the railing. Steiner stood at attention at the back of the room. He looked the most stressed out of all of us. Vivi sat at the front of the bridge, watching the monitor like a kid watching a TV too close.

Good, everyone I trusted was up here. I still had work to do with Amarant, but then again, who didn't? Eiko was a brat, and I doubted Freya would ever truly trust me again. Quina may have trusted me again, but he was so hard to read at times that I tried not to count my chickens before they hatched.

Mist filled up all corners of the monitor. Judging by the sun, we were indeed heading north, straight for the Iifa Tree. It took me a moment to see it, but there was a harsh purple light glowing in the distance. It seemed like the same color of my energy coursing through my blades. The light in the distance radiated with power and sprouted strings of light, like flares coming off a sun.

It was indeed Memoria, the place of memories.

Zidane let out a nervous sigh. It went without saying that tensions were high. The others didn't know what we were getting into, and even if I explained it, it wouldn't help much. This mission was the most dangerous we had undertaken thus far. Not just for ourselves, but for the entire planet. Some of us could very easily die if we weren't careful.

"Zidane, are you alright?" Dagger asked softly.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said. I could tell that he was as shaken as the rest of us. Even I knew what to expect and I was a little frightened. Then again, patting my stomach, I already knew what was going to happen to me.

Vivi looked up from the monitor and gazed at the rest of us questioningly. "We're going to be alright, aren't we?"

For a fraction of a second, I remembered one of my earliest battles alongside Vivi against General Beatrix in Burmecia. Vivi had been taken out early and was left face-down in a puddle with a hole in his stomach. It wasn't right that someone as young as Vivi had to fight for the world like this, but we needed his magic.

No one answered Vivi. Instead, Zidane gripped the railing tightly and let out a breath. "Get ready!" he shouted. With a sweep of his hand, he ordered the ship forward, towards the light. We soared, flying towards the final battle and Kuja's new palace.

Light swirled around the purple orb. It spun ahead of us, larger than even Lindblum's Grand Castle. It almost felt like we were driving into a star. I watched nervously, staring into the center of the orb. When we were close enough to see the Iifa Tree through the impossibly thick mist, the defenses went into overdrive.

No amount of preparation could have readied us for the army of Silver Dragons that flew screaming from Memoria's gate. First, there were dozens…

Then hundreds…

Then thousands.

All five of us watched in horror. We had made a terrible mistake in coming here, underarmed. The Silver Dragons swarmed like a cloud of insects, cutting off our best chances at escape. They blanketed the sky, cutting of our light and blotting out the sun. I would have joked that we would have fought in the shade, but against these numbers, we barely stood a chance. I remembered the trouble I had in killing just one Silver Dragon in a nimble fighter jet. What chance did our slug of a flagship stand?

"Can we fight against that?" Steiner asked.

"We have to try!" Zidane said.

"Here they come!" Dagger cried out.

The first of the swarm of dragons approached our main deck. It reared its head back and prepared to launch its attack. The others braced themselves, but I watched in glee, because only I knew what was going to happen.

Only, that's not what happened…

Instead of a last second, gallant rescue, the dragon's attack connected. It rocked the monitor, blurring the image for a moment. The airship shook against the assault, and looking at the monitor, I could see a dozen similar attacks coming. A red light flashed in the bridge and an alarm blared throughout the ship.

"What the hell is that?" Zidane said, plugging an ear to combat the alarm.

"A red alert!" I said. "My airship on Terra did the same thing!"

"Well, turn it off!"

"I don't know how! Try telling the ship to!"

Zidane looked at the monitor for a moment, then shut his eyes. Seconds later, the alarm stopped, but the red light kept flashing. "Good enough," Zidane decided.

"What are we going to do about the dragons?" Dagger asked.

"What weapons and defenses do we have?" Steiner asked. "Cannons? Magic?"

"Looks like none of that," Zidane said. "I've been telling the ship to load something. I think the only thing we have is the eye on the underbelly of the ship."

"Wonderful!" I said. "Maybe we can ask the dragons to line up one by one." _God dammit! Where's our support?_

"This is no time for sarcasm!" Zidane said. "I'm turning the ship around. We're gonna have to go back and ask Lindblum for help after all!"

"We can't!" I shouted. "The longer we take, the more dragons Kuja can pop out. We need to stop him NOW!"

The moment I finished my thought, the dragons bombarded our ship with laser breaths. All of us were knocked to the ground and struggled to regain our footing against the shifting floor. Several warnings appeared on screen, showing Silver Dragons on the hull of the ship, trying to claw their way in. We had to shake them, but how?

"We can't go on alone like this!" Zidane said, pulling himself back up to the Ship's Heart with the railing. "I'm pulling us back!" Zidane activated the intercom to warn the others. "Everyone! We're—"

"No!" I cried out. I grabbed on to the railing with one hand and grabbed the back of Zidane's shirt. I ripped Zidane away from the Ship's Heart and shouted into the open intercom.

"HANG ON TO SOMETHING!"

I held on to the railing for dear life. The others on the bridge didn't have a chance to get back on their feet as the ship suddenly reversed direction. The dragons were tossed off the top of our ship and we avoided another dozen rounds of laser breaths. The vibrations that made it a chore to stand stopped.

"Trevor?" Zidane shouted. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Something desperate!" I said, holding the railing so tightly that my hands turned white. "Grab the back wall! NOW!"

The others could see the determination in my eyes and didn't question me further. Instead, they held onto the back wall, planting themselves against it and away from the door. I couldn't only hope that the others deeper in the ship had heeded my warning.

"Arm the main cannon!" I told the ship. A small gauge appeared on screen, showing a quickly raising bar, nearing completion in seconds.

The Silver Dragons started chasing us at once, many of which lined themselves up with the ship. One long, messy line formed before us as we retreated, which was exactly what I had hoped they would do. With no idea if this would all work, I plunged the ship back.

The Invincible tilted backwards onto its tailfin, aiming the main cannon at the advancing line of dragons. I kept my arms wide on the railing just to steady myself. Behind me, Zidane held Dagger's hand as gravity forced them into each other against the wall. Steiner grabbed Vivi by the coat to keep the young mage from falling out the doorway.

"FIRE!"

At once, the cannon underneath the Invincible powered up and shot its beam. It was a shot that could and had devastated a city in a single shot. The dragons had just enough time to discover the mistake they had made before they were disintegrated. Hundreds and hundreds of them were reduced to dust and ashes and the laser tore through them, shooting past the Iifa Tree and cutting a swath through their entire swarm.

With its energy spent for the moment, I righted the Invincible. It settled back down and everyone was able to step away from the wall. It let out a short shout to release my own energy, and stared up at the screen in victory.

We hadn't even killed one tenth of the dragons. And they were still coming.

"Shit!" I shouted. "Arm the main cannon again!"

"Trevor!" Zidane said, grabbing my shoulder. "We can't do that again! It didn't work the first time!"

"I'll get more of them! I…" My thoughts droned off when I saw the depleted energy levels. The only reason we were able to fire so quickly before was because of the energy the ship stored naturally. Now, having just fired and with a current energy level around twenty-five percent, it would need another few minutes before it cold fire again. That was time we didn't have.

"We need to retreat!" Zidane said, trying to pull me from the Ship's Heart. I stubbornly remained, unwilling to budge either the ship or myself.

"Look out!" Dagger shouted, pointing to the monitor.

Zidane and I stared up at the monitor in unison to see another dragon just outside our ship. It had a laser beam already charged in its mouth, ready to fire. We all held our ground as best we could, waiting for the impact.

And then the dragon exploded.

We all stared at the screen for a moment as it wavered from the shock of the blast. There were still thousands of dragons flying, but now they weren't all flying towards us. Many of them had diverted and were flying towards something to our starboard side. I hooked the screen and turned it, expanding it to investigate what the dragons were flying towards now. There was a collective cheer of relief from what we saw emerging from the mist.

The entire Lindblum Air Fleet.

XXXXXXXX

Cannons fired, burning the air and destroying several Silver Dragons with each blast. The monsters burst into flames and fell from the sky, clearing the way for the Invincible. Regent Cid stood on the bridge of the Hilde Garde III, which rose high above two rows of a dozen Viltgance class warships approaching from the south, while another dozen approached from the east. Each warship was armed with twenty cannons, and each one of them was firing into the dragon swarm with gusto.

"All ships!" Regent Cid hailed to his entire fleet. "Clear a path for the Invincible!"

"Gwahaha!" Baku laughed from behind Cid. "Can't let those guys steal the whole show for themselves!"

Cid appreciated Baku coming to tell him about the impending attack. Of course, it wasn't Baku who fed the information. Cid glanced back to an engineer, staring out the front windows and trying not to get in the way.

Dante had insisted on coming along on this mission. He gave Cid the information, and damn it, he was going to help Trevor one way or another.

"Stubborn bastard," Dante muttered, looking at the Invincible in its own corner of the sky. "Told you you'd need my help!"

XXXXXXXX

"Uncle Cid!" Dagger called out, running up to the screen. "Why…? How did he know to show up here?"

"Uh…" I stammered at first. "I may have told a friend in Lindblum what we were doing."

"You what?" Dagger shouted. "Trevor, I thought we agreed not to tell anyone about this!"

"Well I'm glad I did! We clearly needed the help!"

"But…"

"That doesn't matter now!" Zidane interrupted. "Trevor, get us through those dragons!"

I just cracked my knuckles. "Done."

The Invincible sped forward, breaking through the dragons' defense line. We bashed through several of them as they tried to regroup through the confusion. Cid's airships continued to pummel every dragon in sight while the dragons spun around, unsure whether to target the Viltgances or us.

However, a group of them got their act together and finally decided to follow us as we made a beeline for Memoria. An alarm signaled that we were being followed, and a small window popped up on screen. About a dozen Silver Dragons were closing in on us fast.

"Head's up!" I said. "These guys aren't backing off! We might need to fight them once we get inside!"

"Hey, what's that?" Vivi asked, pointing to the smaller window.

The Silver Dragons were wiped from the screen and a thick red wall replaced them, turning the window from a warning to little more than wallpaper before it disappeared.

"What was that?" Dagger asked.

"Open a rear view on screen," I told the Invincible. "Wide angle."

The airship heard my command and opened a small window on screen again. This time though, we got to see the entirety of the ship that saved us. It was the best luxury airship in all of Alexandria.

The Red Rose.

"The Red Rose?" Steiner asked. "Could it be… Beatrix?"

XXXXXXXX

"General Beatrix!" Kohel, the third Knight of Pluto shouted over the groaning engine noises. "We can't take much more of that. Our ship is about to burst!"

Beatrix stood on the rear balcony of the Red Rose, watching dragon after dragon plow into the side of the airship. They had managed to deflect and distract the monsters following the Invincible, but there was another wave coming in from the distance. And the Red Rose had no weapons to fend them off. This battle could easily be their end.

"Do not fret!" Beatrix ordered with bravado. "Your captain is in a far more dangerous situation. You are a Pluto Knight! Now act like one!"

Blutzen, the second Knight of Pluto, stood by and muttered to himself, "We all know you came here because you were worried sick about Captain Steiner…"

"Did you say something?" Beatrix shouted, doing a terrible job hiding her blushing face.

A man came walking in with a simple black eye patch, laughing at the scene. "It seems Steiner's men have you on that one Beatrix."

The two Pluto Knights saluted quickly and left. Beatrix turned around and narrowed her eyes at the newcomer. "William," she greeted Captain Delores. "I told you it would be a bad idea for you to come."

"Didn't Queen Garnet leave you in charge of Alexandria in her stead?" Delores asked. "Yet you're here, risking your life when Lindblum has the clear air superiority."

"Neither of us knew the Regent was coming here. You know that," Beatrix said. "Besides, we both have other reasons for showing up."

"Yes, I suppose I do," Delores said, watching the Invincible fly towards the floating orb above the Iifa Tree.

"Are you worried for him?"

"Of course I am," Delores admitted. "I'm terrified he might get himself in over his head. Or worse. And yet, I know he'll push through."

"And why is that?" Beatrix asked, now watching the Invincible as well.

Delores smiled proudly. "Because he is my son."

XXXXXXXX

"What's Beatrix doing here?" Dagger asked. "I told her to stay in Alexandria. How did she know to show up just now?" Her gaze immediately fell on me.

"Don't look at me!" I said. "I was in Lindblum, remember?"

"That… was my fault," Steiner admitted. "She was worried, so I… may have told her…"

"Steiner!" Dagger cried out.

Zidane just laughed. "Quite a woman you fell in love with," he teased.

Steiner just scoffed. "You're one to talk!"

"Waitaminute!" Dagger said sharply. "Steiner, what's that supposed to mean?"

Rather than answer, Steiner turned and walked to the front of the bridge to watch the monitor, trying to avoid the princess' harsh gaze.

"Trevor, the dragons are being held off for now," Zidane said. "Get us in there before they regroup."

"You got it," I said. "Hang on!"

I sent the Invincible into Memoria at full speed. We crashed into the purple orb, hitting a wall of energy, and then time seemed to slow for us, like we had hit a wall. However, light poured around us, filling the bridge and blinding us. The light seemed to go on forever, pausing reality as we shifted realms. I tried opening my eyes several times, only to be met with more light.

Minutes passed and I began to worry if we had made a mistake in coming here. However, I opened my eyes one last time, and saw the most amazing sight of my life.

Memoria.


	2. Recollection of the Past

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's notes: At this point, I've got to give credit where credit is due.

I'm long overdue for saying this, but I want to thank the channel GoingCrazy201 on youtube for putting up a complete walkthrough of Final Fantasy IX. This has helped immensely in the creation of Shattered Mind. Not only has seeing the game played again been fun, but it gave me important details on various visuals, as well as a nearly complete script. Half the time when I'm writing this story, I have a window open to part of GoingCrazy201's videos relevant to what I'm writing.

Also, there are over 1000 videos on that channel, mostly on other video game walkthroughs from what I can see, so you might find something interesting for yourself.

And there we have it. I should have said that 3 years ago. XD

Oh, and what's more important than that? MICRO GOD IS NOW FOR SALE! XD You can find it on the Kindle, the Nook and the iBookstore. More details are in my profile, as well as a description of the story. Help finance the sequel so I can keep you guys entertained well beyond Shattered Mind! ^^

Chapter 2- Recollection of the Past

XXXXXXXX

Memoria.

The game could never do this place justice.

The second the light subsided, we were flying above a cobblestone pathway leading up to a castle so tall, intricate and magnificent, I could only stare in awe. Towers interlinked with other towers. Not only were there several types of designs adorning the building, but there were several themes. There were more modern towers, spliced in with older towers. Some looked Arabic, some were Greek, some Roman, and there were plenty of others that I found difficult to relate to. The entire castle seemed like it was composed of nothing but towers, climbing higher and higher within itself, like a realized Tower of Babel. There was no way this castle could exist under normal physics.

"This is… incredible," Zidane said, at as much a loss for words as I was. Clouds rolled by in the sky, but avoided the castle, giving the light plenty of room to shine down upon it. More clouds fluttered blow the castle, making me wonder if anything could exist below. The whole thing seemed almost holy by contrast.

"This is Kuja's castle?" Dagger said. "It's… This is the most wonderful thing I've ever seen! How could he have built it so quickly?"

"How could he have built it at all?" Freya asked. "That thing could hold more people inside than all of Burmecia! No, all of the Mist Continent!"

By now, everyone had gathered in the bridge. We were alone. The Silver Dragons that dogged our way were nowhere to be seen, but then again, neither were any of Lindblum's Air Fleet. We really were cut off from the others. Completely alone.

I looked down at the cobblestone path leading into the lowest section of the city. Coming to my senses after who knew how long, I flew the Invincible over the path, trying to aim the transportation pad directly at it. After checking the monitor and putting the ship in standby, we were ready to disembark.

We all gathered around the teleportation pod in the center of the ship. Before we left, Quina had talked about how he zapped himself inside during our escape from Terra, so the opposite might be possible as well. We stood in line, waiting for someone to man up and go in first.

"Are you sure this will work Quina?" Zidane asked.

"Is no problem!" Quina assured us. "I warp in from outside before."

"But are we sure we'll land safely?" Steiner asked. "We all saw the environment. What if we don't land on that sole pathway?"

"Are you questioning my piloting?" I asked. "We'll be fine, we're right over the pathway. I checked."

"Then you go first if you're so sure," Amarant said.

Everyone seemed to turn to me, as if calling my dare. I just scowled at the tall bandit and huffed. "Fine, I will," I said. I took a step forward into the middle of a circular pad, marked with the same triangular rune we saw in Mt. Gulug and Oeilvert. As soon as my feet settled, bright rings swam up from the outer most ring, passed through my body, then sank back into the middle of the rune. I could feel myself sinking, until my heart raced suddenly. I felt like I was running at a million miles an hour. The world rushed by me so quickly that I didn't have time to comprehend it. As soon as I opened my eyes and looked around though, I realized that the Invincible was floating passively above me.

"Woah," I said, checking my body out. The teleportation had happened so quickly that I wasn't even sure it had happened.

I took a few steps towards the castle. The walkway was wider than I thought, but was really got my attention was Memoria itself. The castle was so tall that craning my neck as high as I could, I still couldn't see the top.

_This is it, huh Kaiten?_

"_So it would seem,_" he agreed. "_This place is even bigger than Rivnia Tower back on Terra."_

For the tenth time that day, my hand found its way to my stomach. The bruise had already spread to the rest of my torso. Was the bruise only skin deep? How were my organs faring to this rot? My stomach hurt, but that could have been from stress. That's what I hoped at least.

"_Trevor, remember to stay focused._"

_I am._

"_You're worrying about dying far too much. When you're on a mission, there are thousands of ways you could get killed. Don't think about that. Think only of the mission and what has to be done._"

_I'm sorry, but I don't exactly have Delta Force training here._

"_You don't need it. Just think of something simple, and peaceful, and calming. Anything can work if it takes your mind off of things."_

_Peaceful, huh?_

I shut my eyes and sighed, leaving the moment and letting my mind wander to a better time. A simpler time. Back when I was still a college student trying to get by in classes. Every weekend, I'd spend my times relaxing and blowing off steam from a week's worth of work. Other students drank or partied into the wee hours of the night. I however, found a much better solution in the pancakes the cafeteria sold only on Saturdays.

"_Better?_"

_Mmm… Pancakes…_

Kaiten was silent for a moment before he said, "_I shouldn't be surprised. Like, at all._"

"Trevor!"

I turned and saw Zidane standing at the front of the group as the last of them teleported down.

"Quit zoning out!" Zidane said.

"Hey, you know you would too," I said. "I mean, just look at how vast this place is!"

"Well, you're right about that," he said. Zidane looked like he was about to give a small speech, but he was interrupted, twisting his head around quickly looking for the source of whatever he heard.

"What's wrong Zidane?"

"Did someone just call my name?" he asked.

Hooray! I wasn't the only crazy one hearing voices now!

"No," Dagger said, giving me a short look. After what I told her in Pandemonium, I wasn't surprised. "Are you feeling alright?" Dagger asked.

"That's weird…" I said.

"Maybe you're just hearing things," Freya suggested.

"I don't know…" Zidane said hesitantly. His head craned wildly a second later, searching for that sound again. "You hear that?"

"I hear nothing," Steiner said.

Zidane craned his head up once more a second later, and to everyone's surprise called out, "Garland?"

Everyone let out a gasp or a groan until Zidane silenced them. Even I was surprised to see that Garland was still around, even if I couldn't see or hear him myself. There was a kind of comfort in having the old guy around.

"_General Saiko…_" Kaiten said forlornly.

_Kaiten? You alright?_

"_I'm fine. I read ahead in your memories so I knew he would be here, I…_"

_What? Is something wrong?_

"_No. I guess I had just hoped he would reach out to us as well._"

It made sense. Kaiten was the last Terran alive, not considering Zidane's origins. Still, it must have been disheartening for a father figure to reach out to someone else.

_He's probably straining himself to talk to just one person,_ I suggested. _I know he would talk to you too if you had the strength._

"_Perhaps,_" he said, though somehow, I didn't feel he was truly convinced.

After another moment, Zidane lowered his head and looked at all of us. "You all heard me talking to myself just now, right?"

Everyone nodded, including myself. My best guess was that Garland had talked to Zidane the same way Kaiten and I talked. What a strange coincidence. We could learn so much from the Terrans, if we had better ways to study them than asking Kaiten random questions.

"I was just talking to Garland," Zidane continued. "He told me that our memories created this place."

"Wait, what?" Eiko blurted out. "You mean _we_ made this place?"

"Well, it's not just us, I don't think," Zidane said. "Garland wasn't really clear, but he made it sound like everyone's memories on the entire planet helped make this castle."

While the others turned to the castle again, watching the particles build new sections around it, I just folded my arms in thought. It wasn't just the people alive now that made this place, but every single person who ever lived, and there were still memories before that! The scenes inside Memoria captured the planet's entire life. Did that mean the planet itself was alive? Did it have memories?

"I guess we'll have to keep moving forward if we want any answers," Zidane said, trekking down the long path to the castle. "Let's go guys."

I followed in the back of the group as everyone overtook me. I just trudged along, arms folded and losing myself in thought.

"I wonder where we really are?" Eiko wondered aloud as we walked.

Where were we? Good question. A magical castle that just happened to have Gaia's Crystal at its very center? That wasn't enough. Something was off about it. Even after beating the game some twenty-something times, I still wasn't sure what it was exactly. And even then, how did all this come to be? Kuja couldn't have had enough time to build this place, no matter how powerful he became. And yet, it existed, right here for us all to see. The hard cobblestone beneath my feet was proof enough of that.

Memories… That was the key. Memoria was a mass collection of memories and events, built in by the experiences of everyone on the planet. But the memories went all the way back to Gaia's birth. No one was around to build it then. So then what created it?

The Crystal. Was it truly so simple? Could the Crystal, the focal point of all life on this planet, have drawn the memories into itself? But then why? What was the purpose? Defense? Clearly not, even though Memoria boasted its own brand of monsters. How long had the Crystal existed here? Or the planet? What created the Crystal? And what about Terra? Their Crystal went dark and died, ruining the planet. Could the overuse of the Crystal on Terra be the exact reason why Terra fell from grace? But why would that be?

What was I missing? What piece did the game fail to mention here? I went over everything I knew about Terra, Gaia, Memoria, Oeilvert and Final Fantasy IX. I thought about the souls that powered the Crystal, the memories that built themselves around the Crystal, and the portal that brought us—

The portal! Yes, of course Kuja never created this place! But why would he create a castle when he could steal one? And what better castle to steal than the one housing the planet's Crystal? But if that were true… then that would have to mean that we were in the only place the Crystal would truly exist. I looked around at the swirling clouds, and back at the portal that led us here…

_We were at the center of Gaia!_

I didn't know if it were the physical center or the metaphysical, but looking around, I imagined that anything we did here could have dire consequences on the rest of the planet. I remembered the roots of the Iifa Tree, and how they dug in deep, reaching every continent in the game. If they could stretch that far, then could they dig deep enough to reach us?

I looked again at the swirling clouds around us. What if they weren't clouds? Souls powered the Crystal, and all processes like that had byproducts and residue. Then maybe… Maybe those weren't clouds at all.

_It was mist!_

I wanted to shout, to scream, to do anything! So many thoughts raced in my head! The plot holes from the game! Vivi's short life span! The fate of the world! All could be solved right down here! And all I'd have to do was—

**BAM!**

My excitement ended abruptly and my thoughts lost track as I fell on my ass, rubbing my forehead where I had run into the wall. We had already made the mile long walk in the time I had been contemplating our reality, and were now just entering the castle. The others, already walking inside the front portcullis, gave me curious and concerned looks.

"Trevor?" Dagger asked. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I said as Steiner gave me a hand up. "It's just my pride, after all."

"You're going to get into trouble if you don't pay attention," Zidane scolded. "We don't know what we're getting into. Keep your guard up."

"Right, sorry," I said, stepping inside as well. My pulse still raced from my supposed discovery. I wasn't even sure if I was right at all, but if I was…

…Maybe there was a way Kaiten and I could survive…

XXXXXXXX

At first, Memoria had all the inner workings of a regular castle. There was a portcullis at the front entrance, stone carvings in the walls, ornate pillars set precisely and a welcoming hall with a twenty-foot high ceiling. Light poured in from the caged windows, with wires hanging inside each pane in a floral design. It was exactly the kind of castle I would want to live in.

Then we left the front hall and "normal" went out the window.

"What the—?" Zidane blurted out inside the next room.

"Is this…" Dagger started. "Are we inside a giant clock?"

The next room opened above and below us, adding easily twenty more feet in both directions. Our path led us around the perimeter of the room while a fifty-foot pendulum swung precariously close to us, avoiding the path by mere inches. Somewhere, ticking echoed within the room, though I was hard-pressed to find the source.

"What's with this place?" Eiko asked. "Who would design a castle like this?"

"Well, our memories, if you believe Garland," Zidane explained. "It doesn't make much sense to me, but I think we should be ready for literally anything."

"It's fascinating," Dagger said, never taking her eyes off of the pendulum as we made our way around the room.

"Thinking of redesigning your own castle?" I teased, with an elbow in Dagger's shoulder.

"Don't be absurd!" Steiner said. "Such a contraption would never fit inside Alexandria Castle! It is completely impractical."

"Someone should really describe sarcasm to you someday," I frowned.

The walkway took us outside again, but by the time we were out, it was nighttime. Somehow, we had taken hours to get to this point, though it felt like only minutes. Perhaps the room we had just left really was a clock and had slowed our progress. Then again, could this all be part of the memory as well? Did time flow normally in this place, or at all? No, it had to, or else additional details and memories couldn't add themselves. But that still didn't answer my question on time flow. I was starting to feel light-headed at all of it and tried not to worry myself over small details.

The path snaked its way up the side of the building, zigzagging between peaks and lookout towers. The gothic design of the whole side of the building reminded me of the Legacy of Kain games. This entire world was making my head spin again. If I could ever get home, I would lay off Final Fantasy for a while and only play brain numbing, "kill everything" shooters.

The path continued up ahead, jutting directly out of the top of a tower. With no support beams or cable holding it up, the bridge was clearly defying the laws of physics and there was no way it could be real.

How often would I say that while in Memoria?

The bridge overlooked the entire gothic structure that we had seen so far. We could see the entry hall, the clock room, and if I squinted, I was sure I could see the Invincible parked out in the distance. Torches lit up the halls below us and fog rolled over the rooftops, making the area look like some 1800's version of London. I wondered briefly if we would have to worry about Jack the Ripper, but then I remembered that the Chaos Guardians were still waiting for us ahead.

"I could never have dreamed that a place like this exists," Freya said. "Such majesty… I'll have to remember it for when we rebuild Burmecia."

"Don't you think it's a little dark?" Vivi asked. "I mean, Burmecia is already the kingdom of eternal rain. These buildings just might make everything look creepy."

"Burmecia has open roads and we constantly suffer from blinding fog. But down there, the fog just rolls away, siphoned off by the tight roads and light breezes."

I nodded. "Yeah, that, or you could just build somewhere else."

"My _people_," Freya paused, "have lived in Burmecia for centuries. It's our homeland. We won't abandon it for something so petty."

"Or, you could realize that there's better weather less than a day's march away and build away from the rain. You know, the rain that _never fucking stops!_"

Freya swung her polearm up at me to intimidate me, but was met by my crossed short swords. We struggled for a moment, holding each other in place. Metal ground upon metal, going nowhere.

"I would make sure you were forbidden from entering the city," Freya threatened. Her polearm glowed red as she powered up a dragon technique.

"Like you could stop me," I countered, as my short swords glowed purple.

"STOP IT!"

Zidane rushed in and pulled Freya back as Steiner ran in and lifted me backwards. Our attacks grazed off each other, fading as soon as contact was lost.

"What the hell guys?" Zidane shouted between the two of us. "We have enough to worry about with Kuja and you're going after each other?"

"We can't trust him!" Freya said. "You heard how long he kept those secrets from us! Who knows what else he's hiding from us!"

"So now I'm not allowed any kind of privacy?" I shouted back. "You think that no one here has any kind of secrets that you don't know about?"

"Those secrets didn't nearly get people killed!"

"I SAID, ENOUGH!" Zidane shouted again. "I don't care who doesn't like who here, but right now, we're going to worry about Kuja and Kuja alone! Anyone who disagrees can go back to the Invincible! Got it?"

There was a short pause as Freya and I traded glances. "Understood," she said in a huff.

"Fine," was all I said as I slid my short swords back into their sheaths.

"Good," Zidane said, continuing the lead. "I have enough to worry about without you two trying to kill each other."

My wounded pride alone was enough to keep me away from Freya anyway, but the others filled in the space between us, forcing us apart. Considering the spat we just had, it was a good idea.

We continued along the bridge and I tried to think of ways to get Freya to back off. I crossed murder right off my list, lest my jokes bring Damien back at all. An apology and flowers? Somehow Freya didn't seem the type to be taken aback by flowers and chocolates. Should I help her rebuild Burmecia? That would probably help a little, but it might not be enough. She was pretty pissed.

I tried thinking of something else, but then I remembered my stomach and rotting body. Funny. Perhaps I hadn't quite accepted my inevitable death yet. Even after obsessing over it as much as I did, I still didn't see it as real, even after traveling to Terra, fighting with purple magic, and living the last several months inside a video game.

"Hey, what's that?" Eiko asked, pointing at the far end of the bridge.

In the distance, I could see a red streak winding its way over and around the bridge, darting in a spiral right for us. It looked like a red blanket flittering in the wind. It came closer and closer, until I realized just what it was.

"Get back!" I shouted. "It's gonna ram us!"

I twisted back, tripping on my own feet and falling to the ground, just as the red river crashed over us. Impossibly quick, it sprang up and revealed a blue underbelly and two thin arms. Each hand held a sword bigger than the arm itself. We didn't have time to react as each blade swiped down at us. Vivi and Eiko were small enough that the attack missed them, but Steiner and Amarant were immediately caught up in the attack.

Steiner's armor protected him, but the attack picked him up entirely and slammed him into Zidane, throwing them beyond the bridge and sent them crashing into a window of the clock room. Amarant caught the attack in his claws, but was picked up the same way, crashed into Quina, and was tossed into a tower behind us. Quina was too heavy to lift off, but he rolled head over heels backwards until he fell over the side of the bridge.

"No!" Dagger cried out, reaching with futility to save any of our thrown friends.

I quickly drew my short swords and faced this new enemy. Maliris, this first of the four Chaos Guardians, towered over us as she unfolded four more arms, each armed with a sword or a spear. Her serpentine body curved over us, yet I couldn't see her face. Her flaming red fur draped over her head. I had to watch myself with this one. In only a few seconds, she dispatched four of our allies.

"We meet again, so to speak," Maliris chimed. "I am one of the Chaos Guardians. Kneel before my power!"

"Get back!" I said to the others, taking point. My new obsidian armor would probably hold out against those blades, but I wasn't in any hurry to find out. Eiko and Vivi scurried behind me quickly, but Dagger insisted on standing beside me, protecting the kids as well. This was not the party I would have chosen, but we were the only four left and didn't really have a choice.

"So, you're going to fight?" Maliris mocked. "How adorable. And frivolous! You don't stand a chance!"

"We'll see," I said as my short swords cracked with power.

"You would send _children_ to fight?" the snake-woman said. "You must be desperate! You don't even have—"

"_Demooon!"_

A shout and a crack split the air as a red streak of light came crashing down onto Maliris' head. The guardian shouted in pain, swiping at her attacker. The red streak jumped back and landed beside us and I looked at Freya in surprise.

"Nice entrance," I said. "I thought you got taken out by the last attack like the others."

"This monster is like the guardian I fought in Mt. Gulug!" Freya said, readying herself at my side. "I know how it fights, so I leapt out of the way. Just follow my lead and we'll be fine."

"Right," I said reluctantly. "You have the lead."

I looked at the weapons Maliris wielded. There were two scimitars that dwarfed her arms, a pair of incredibly sharp katanas, and a polearm that she held in her lowest arms. It was going to be a real challenge getting through those defenses of hers. I took a short glance behind me and saw Vivi and Eiko ready to fight as well. We were going to need them.

"GO!" Freya shouted, leaping high into the air. Maliris craned her head up to watch Freya as the Burmecian vaulted over her, but then she turned back down to see me charging in. I used only a small amount of energy, yet the Demon Sabers I created spread a good three feet out of my blades, yet without the hint of extra weight.

However, Maliris' use of multiple weapons came with full knowledge of her surroundings and how to use them. She brought the polearm down to block me, then swung in with both katanas for my head. I barely dodged one and caught the other with my Demon Saber, but to my shock, the energy didn't cut through. Only Damien had been able to resist my attack like that, and he existed inside my head. How could corporeal blades withstand my assault?

The counter didn't end there. Even with my distracting her, Maliris swung her long tail up, catching Freya in midair. The snake tail wrapped around Freya's waist once and drove her into the ground, erupting with a tremendous crash. The monster's entire body was in my way, so I had no way to tell if Freya was injured or not.

"Freya!" I called out. "Freya, are you alright?"

She didn't answer. I only heard grinding blades as I held off three weapons at once. Both katanas pressed against one short sword while the polearm kept my other arm busy. I was in an awkward position and could feel the effort sapping my strength. However, with Freya down, what prevented Maliris from using her other two blades on me.

"Hardly worth my time," she said, bringing her scimitars above her head.

I pulled all the energy out of my Demon Sabers and collapsed them into an Explosion. I shrank back the instant both of them exploded and pulled away. Maliris' weapons were forced back and her scimitars widely missed me thanks to the debris I kicked up. I fell back in front of the kids as they looked up to me expectantly.

"Trevor!" Dagger called from the edge of the bridge behind me. "Give me a hand!"

I kept my glance on Maliris, ready to counter her next move, but chanced a quick glance backwards. Dagger was hanging on the edge, trying to pull Quina up from the side, but not doing a very good job at it. I wanted to help her, but there was no way the kids could hold off an attack from Maliris if I left. I had to stay on the front line. I was the only one left.

"Hold on!" I called. "Vivi, give me something here! See if you can blow her up."

"I've been gathering my magic," he said. "Give me a second."

As I prepared another pair of Demon Sabers, Maliris came at us again, this time, with everything she had. I caught a katana and scimitar on one side, then matched the other side, binding all four blades against me at once. I was confident that I could hold her off long enough until she raised the polearm up, giving herself an easy and clean strike at my head. If I dropped any of my defenses, then her swords would slice me to ribbons. If I didn't, then her polearm would cleave me in two. I started to panic, until—

"FIRAGA!"

A massive explosion ripped through the bridge underneath Maliris. A cone of fire overtook her, causing her to shriek and back away. Her entire body shivered, giving me a chance to escape. The fire remained in place for another moment, but as I peered through it, Maliris just peered right back. Fire wasn't the right element to use. It had startled her, but that was it. She slithered towards us, raising her swords again to attack.

"DRAGON BREATH!"

A sudden blast of green light exploded and overtook Maliris from behind. This time, she roared in real pain. To add to it, Freya launched herself over the snake woman, swinging her polearm low and cutting into Maliris' upper arm. Blood traced the wound and sprayed into the air. Freya landed next to me as Maliris dropped one scimitar to grip the wound.

"You bitch!" Maliris accused. "Attacking someone from behind?"

"You don't make it easy," Freya quipped. "That tail gets in the way."

"That gets rid of one arm," I said, joining Freya at her side. "Five more to go. Think you can do that again?"

"Not likely," Freya said. "She's going to be on her guard now. Besides…" Freya turned and glanced back at Dagger, who was only now pulling Quina up over the edge. At least that was one less thing to worry about.

"Look, this thing fights just like the Fire Guardian did," Freya said. "Amarant and I tried flanking her and it did us no good."

"So how'd you kill it?" I asked.

"We whittled it down, but we might not have to here," she said with a smile. "Vivi, we'll need ice magic, and lots of it. Dagger, summon your ice Eidolon. Eiko, keep us healed and Trevor, stay back and defend the others."

"Wait, you want me on defense?" I argued. "Screw that, I'm killing this thing!"

"We don't have time to argue!" Freya said. "Zidane's gone and I'm the only one who's fought something like this. Now stick to the plan or just leave!"

At first I thought Freya was just being defiant because she didn't trust me. However, once I got a good look in her eyes, I could tell she meant all business. She wasn't thinking about right or wrong, or her pride, but whether or not she could get everyone out of this mess alive. That was all I needed in a leader right now. I just had to swallow my pride sometimes.

"Fine, I'll keep them safe," I said.

"Good," Freya nodded. "Vivi, are you ready?"

The little mage finished charging the spell and gripped his staff tightly. He had a determined look in his eyes and he shouted, "Ready!"

Freya flipped her polearm into a ready stance and stood at the front of our pack. "Good. You start off. Dagger, finish with your summon after I attack, got it?"

"I'm ready," Dagger said. Despite the situation, she looked serene as she shut her eyes and began chanting under her breath.

"BLIZZAGA!"

Maliris hadn't heard our plan, so when the twenty-foot ice spike shot out of the bridge, she was completely unprepared. It didn't skewer her, but it did cut a deep gash in her tail. Blood traced up the side of the icicle, leaving a red streak almost like a piece of art frozen in place, just before the spike shattered.

Maliris covered her face with her five remaining arms as ice rained down, covering her in shrapnel. Several smaller cuts poked all around her arms and body, letting steam loose as the ice melted into Maliris' fiery skin. The ice countered her natural attunement with flame and did as much internal damage as it did external. As soon as the air cleared and the ice halted, Maliris lowered her arms and growled.

"You miserable little—wha—!"

The attack, though effective, had only been a distraction. By the time Maliris lowered her arms, Freya was already in her face, soaring through the air with polearm lowered. The snake woman didn't have time to react as Freya swung her blade low, cutting into the second arm of the night. Maliris screamed as her second upper arm was severed. It hung loosely for only a moment, connected only by several strands of muscle and skin, then fell to the ground in a bloody pool.

With two arms and both scimitars now useless, Maliris had to redouble her efforts. She used a fire spell to cauterize the stump on her shoulder, sealing the blood off and leaving a sticky puddle beside her.

Freya meanwhile landed on Maliris' other side and wasted no time in reacting. She spun around and launched another Dragon skill as soon as she could. "Cherry Blossoms!" she yelled as a pink light surrounded her target.

The pinkish light spun like a tornado, quickly taking on the appearance of a dragon. Its maw opened wide as flakes and scales started to peel off, dropping all around Maliris. Each "blossom" fell against the monster and popped in a small, but loud explosion. Dozens of popped filled our ears, accompanied by Maliris' gasps of pain. The dragon around her made one final run, opening its mouth wide and engulfing her, biting down around Maliris' upper body and setting off a chain reaction. A hundred pops all went off at once, knocking the snake woman off balance and sending her onto her stomach.

"We did it!" Eiko cried out. "We're winning!"

"No…" Maliris coughed, quickly getting her bearings back. "You are not!"

Rather than attack us, Maliris swung her tail for Freya. The Dragon Knight saw the attack coming and leapt out of the way, jumping high into the air. "Dagger!" she shouted down at us. "Use your summon!"

The words barely had enough time to leave Freya's lips as the tail came back for another swipe from behind. This time, Freya didn't see it coming and was caught off guard. Maliris' tail wrapped around Freya twice, trapping one arm under the coils and tightening instantly. The air was constricted out of Freya so fast that she didn't even have time to gasp.

"FREYA!" I called up to her. Her polearm fell from her grasp and dropped harmlessly over the side of the bridge, falling to the "city" below us. There was no safe way below to recover it, so Freya was now defenseless.

With no blade or counter to worry about, Maliris gladly slammed Freya's body into the bridge, sending a shockwave our way and denting the path ahead. Freya's face bulged from the pain and the constriction, and she didn't even have the pleasure of crying out. With her domination over the Dragon Knight now settled, Maliris laughed as she looked the rest of us over.

"Dagger!" I called out, bringing my Demon Sabers to life.

"Oh chilling maiden of the freezing sea," Dagger chanted. Magical energy radiated from her, and we were all braced to run for cover as soon as Shiva came forth. "Encase my enemies in your glacial prison! COME FORTH SHIVA!"

Quina, the kids and I ran behind Dagger as a gentle pillar of snow started to fall on the bridge. It quickly collected, and from it, Shiva burst to life. Her skin was a light blue, like she was covered from head to toe in frostbite, but from her fluid movement as she spun in the air, it didn't impede her in the slightest.

Shiva landed gingerly on the bridge and took one look at Maliris. With a wave of her hand, Shiva summoned forth six large icicles, each the size of a broadsword. The icicles flew through the air, right for Maliris. With six icy crashes, the icicles slammed into the bridge, covering it like quills on a spine. Ice grew from the icicles and covered the entire bridge, before breaking apart in a fine, snowy dust. The snow blew away in the breeze, and we were left with a clear, empty bridge.

"We… we did it?" I asked. I knew Dagger's Eidolons were strong, but I didn't think Maliris would have died so easily.

"Great job Dagger!" Eiko congratulated. "I knew you'd do it!"

"Aya! I jealous!" Quina said. Blue magic had nothing on summoning magic. Or black, or white in my opinion.

"That was amazing!" Vivi said. "That looked so much stronger than my own magic!"

"Uh, thanks," Dagger said, looking around the bridge in confusion. It was about that time that I looked around and started to come to the same conclusion as she was. "Guys?" Dagger asked. "Where's Freya?"

Suddenly, the cheering stopped. Everyone had a sobering moment as they all realized that Freya was nowhere in sight.

"I didn't… I didn't kill her too, did I?" Dagger asked. She looked like she was on the verge of tears.

"No, no, I'm sure she's alright," Eiko assured the queen. "You've seen how high she jumps. A fall from here just couldn't kill her!"

But Vivi was unconvinced. "But what if she was caught up in the attack?"

"VIVI!" Eiko shouted.

"Oh, ah… sorry Dagger. I didn't mean it like that."

Dagger just fell to her knees, saddened by our sudden loss. Even I was unsure how to feel. It was entirely possible that Freya had survived, but it was also entirely possible that she had been killed. Then again, what had happened to the others? Zidane, Steiner and Amarant were still missing. If they were alright, then surely Freya had a chance as well. If nothing else, we could start a search party and look for her. Memoria couldn't be that big, right?

I looked back at the others after sheathing my blades. Quina had pulled a sandwich out of his pack and was offering it to Dagger. "You eat," he said. "Food makes things better. Eat."

Dagger stood again, but declined the sandwich. "Thanks Quina, but I'm really not hungry."

Quina frowned, but took solace that Dagger was feeling better. Then he ate the sandwich himself. Better that it not go to waste.

"So what do we do?" Dagger asked. "The others are still missing."

"Zidane and Steiner crashed into the clock room," I said. "They'll catch up soon enough. And I'm sure Amarant can find his way back. We should just wait here."

"You'll never last that long!"

There was a moment of horror as we all looked down the bridge, just as two enormous hands gripping a pair of katanas slipped over the edge. With a grunt and a heave, Maliris hoisted herself up, still as well armed as before. I took a moment to check her tail. To my relief, Freya was still wrapped up, though she looked unconscious. At least we still had a body to heal.

"That was a foolish effort," Maliris taunted. "I was able to wrap my body around the support pillar below us. Now that your party is down to half strength, you have no chance against me!"

With Freya down, we only had myself as melee and defense. We could still use a magical barrage, but surely Maliris would be expecting that. It was likely that she had a counter for that ready. I pulled out both short swords and charged them with Demon Sabers. I would have to be ready for anything as well.

After the style Maliris had used so far, I had expected her to come at us with a few sword slashes, but I only noticed the two charged spells in her hands at the last moment.

"Double Firaga!" Maliris cried.

I only heard the first explosion as it erupted behind me. Dagger and Eiko screamed for a moment before the second blast hit. I heard Vivi gasp while I was knocked forward right onto my face. In just two blasts, not even a second apart, Maliris was able to decimate our entire defense line. In the crash, one of my short swords slipped from my hand. I kept a death grip on the second and pushed myself onto my back as I tried to recover my breath. The blast had taken more out of me than I had thought.

As I looked up, Maliris towered over me and looked down. I could see a sinister smile behind that head of overflowing hair. "And another one falls," she gloated.

I couldn't breathe. I coughed as I frantically tried to fill my lungs, but I was too off-guard. All I could do was hold my short sword up defensively with one hand on the blade for support. I shut my eyes and prepared for the impact.

However, when I heard the crash come, I didn't feel anything. Slowly, I opened my eyes, but to my surprise, I didn't see Maliris standing over me.

It was Quina.

Quina was the only one who had escaped the firaga, and now was holding Maliris at bay. Both her katanas were trapped within the prongs of his giant fork. I always thought of Quina's weapons as a joke, but it actuality, they had a lot of use in capturing enemy weaponry.

"I…not…let…YOU!" Quina shouted. However steadfast he may have been though, Maliris was stronger, and was already pushing the Qu back.

"You bloated bastard!" Maliris said. I could see her bringing her polearm out at her side. "Take this!"

"QUINA!" I shouted. Instinct and fear overtook me as I swung my sword out at Maliris. I extended the Demon Saber to the furthest that I could muster. Purple magic met scales and the purple magic won, cutting deep into Maliris' skin and spilling her blood by the pint.

At once, Maliris screamed and dropped her defense. She kept some strength in her struggle with Quina, but in her agony couldn't swing her polearm. She bent over, trying to contain her pain, but that was all the advantage we needed. I spun myself to my feet, still a little woozy from the explosion, and pressed the attack.

Quina and I worked in a strange sync. I stepped in, cutting into Maliris' stomach again. Quina, seeing the effect of ice from before had his blue magic ready. "Aqua Breath!" he cried out. With his head held back, he snapped forward and spat a pool's worth of water at the open wounds. Steam rose from the contacted water, causing plenty of damage and further hindering Maliris.

With the sudden break in combat, I took the chance to disarm Maliris again, literally. I continued my momentum and swung into her lower arm, which held her polearm. The Demon Saber cut into her easily enough, slicing bone and muscle like it was butter. With a cry of shock and fear, Maliris' arm fell, dropping the polearm.

"You bastard!" Maliris cried out, reaching for me with her other hand. However, Quina had my back covered.

"Aqua Breath!" he shouted, spitting another wave of water at Maliris' exposed stomach. The snake woman screamed and did everything she could to keep Quina from pushing her back any further.

"Aqua Breath!"

With the polearm gone, we only had the two katanas to deal with. However, I was more concerned with Freya. She hadn't made a sound since Maliris climbed back up. She could still be under constriction. I had to get her out of there.

"Quina can you handle her for another minute?" I called out.

"I fine!" he said confidently. "She not win! Aqua Breath!"

I picked up the polearm as Maliris screamed again. The polearm itself was heavy, yet seemed to emanate a powerful aura. The shaft was a strong metal that I couldn't quite guess at. The head was an orange metal in the shape of a tall flame. It seemed to glow, brewing with power deep within. Suddenly, Freya's missing polearm didn't seem like such a tragedy.

"Freya!" I called out. "Head's up!"

I hoisted the polearm onto my shoulder and held it in both hands. I took a short running start and threw it javelin-style for Maliris' tail. My aim wasn't perfect, but it was good enough for Freya to pluck out of the air. I cheered as I saw her move. Even better, she was able to gather enough strength to swing the blade against the tail confining her. The new polearm severed the tail cleanly, freeing Freya at last.

I ran to Freya's side as she collapsed and struggled to regain her breath. "Are you alright?" I asked.

"No," she muttered, pressing down on her chest. "Broken ribs…. Trouble breathing… Maybe punctured lung…"

"Just take it easy," I said. "She only has three arms left. Quina and I can finish her off."

But Freya would have none of it. She glared at me angrily, then at Maliris hatefully. "Never…" she muttered. Before I knew it, she was covered in a soft green light. It was Reis' Wind, her healing ability. It didn't seem to heal much since I could still hear her rasping, but Freya was able to stand and hold her new polearm easily enough.

With a single leap, Freya jumped onto Maliris' back. With no other option, Maliris grabbed Quina with her free hand and threw him away. Her stomach had turned dark and crusty from his Aqua Breaths and her skin cracked as she moved, but she still raised her katanas and swung at Freya. Fortunately, it was an awkward stretch and the dragon knight was able to counter each attack.

Freya was in prime position to finish this, and I had to help her. I extended my Demon Saber once more and dug it into Maliris' back. I could see the blade spearing her all the way through, jutting out her crusty stomach. The shock was all that we needed to make the snake woman freeze up for half a second. It was all the time Freya needed to bring her blade up and swing it down in a precise arc.

Freya leapt from Maliris' back, falling weakly to her knees. However, her decent was soon followed by Maliris' head, landing with a wet smack against the bridge. The rest of her body soon collapsed as well.

"Freya!" I shouted as I ran to her side. "Hey, are you alright?"

"Help…" she muttered. Her voice was so quiet that I could barely hear her more than a foot away.

Dagger and Eiko were still out from the explosions. I didn't have any healing spells. What good could I do? "Potions!" I quickly realized. "Um… I have some around here… Uh… Who was carrying them?"

"Trevor," Quina said, stepping up in the center of our fallen group. "No worry. I heal."

A gentle white aura surrounded Quina for a moment. He shut his eyes in concentration, stretching his arms out like he was trying to reach all of us. After a moment, when the aura became its most intense, Quina released the magic and it washed over all of us.

"White Wind!"

A warm light encompassed all of us. Light sparkled around us, touching our wounds lightly and doing a moderate amount of healing. Soon, Dagger, Eiko and Vivi stood again, and Freya's breathing seemed to improve and quiet.

"Thanks Quina," Dagger said.

"Yeah, nice job," I had to agree. "You really stepped up in there."

"I not let you die," Quina said, holding his fork and adopting a brave stance, though it was likely unintentional. "We finish this!"

"Hold on," Dagger interrupted. "We should heal up a little more, and we still need to wait for the others to find us."

Everyone relaxed at once. Vivi and Eiko plopped right onto the ground, glad for the chance to finally sit. I looked back at the clock room, wondering what was taking Zidane and Steiner. Would we have to send a search party after them? And what about Amarant? There was no way we could complete the rest of Memoria with three people missing from our party.

"Trevor," Freya said. I just glanced up at her as she nodded and said, "Good job."

I just nodded back at her and said, "You too."

While the others began tending their wounds, I wandered over to Maliris' corpse. While her body was piled in one corner of the street, her blood poured out by the gallon from both her stumped head and tail. My shoes got sticky enough to remind me of the bloody field within my mind.

Moving to her arms, I looted both her katanas. While I had gotten used to my short swords of the past few weeks, I took an instant liking to the katanas. They were reminiscent of my days in the dojo and their balance was perfect. I took a few practice swings, charging them with purple magic. To my surprise, they charged almost as easily as my current short swords.

"_How are they?_" Kaiten asked.

_Pretty good,_ I said. _Good weight, very sharp edge… If Maliris wasn't trying to overdo it with having too many weapons, we would have been in trouble._

"_I noticed the same. She was more of a showoff than a warrior. More swords does not mean better fighter._"

_So says the dual-wielder._

"_Hello pot. My name is kettle._"

_Ahahaha…_ I said sarcastically.

"_Hey, let me try the swords out._"

_Good idea. This way we can use our own sword set when we switch control._

As my entire body went numb, Kaiten wasted no time in testing the blades out as soon as he had control of our arms. He went through a routine, swinging one sword while blocking with the other, swapping between offence and defense so quickly that I wondered how I could have ever beaten him within my mind. Kaiten was leagues beyond me. I really did need to take lessons from him.

_Not bad,_ Kaiten decided. _These aren't my blades, but they're damn close._

Kaiten charged one blade up and shot an Arc into the distance, slicing into a far off building. There was a small avalanche as the building's support collapsed and dropped into the city below us.

_Yes, these will definitely do._

"_Good. Now all we have to do is find a cure for death and we can make your new swords worthwhile._"

_There is that problem,_ Kaiten admitted. _Any ideas?_

"_This place is surrounded by mist. So far, mist has been the source of everything within this world. Maybe, if we could get into the clouds, we could find a cure, or repair ourselves._"

_Is that it? Do you think it'll really be that easy? That would only be a temporary solution at best. It would be like how Terra had to restore itself._

"_Perhaps, but it's better than dying._"

_We'll have to delve into caves to find leftover mist._

"_Yeah, and that's assuming it doesn't all dry up when we kill Kuja here._"

Kaiten sheathed the Masamune alongside the short swords, making for an awkward fit, but it was the best we had. He sighed, looking up to the open skies. This far into Memoria, we were no longer seeing the mist from outside, but artificial clouds swayed above instead. Was there mist inside Memoria for us? Would we have to break away from the others? Would the plan even work? I tried not to think about dying and maintained the foolishly optimistic attitude that had kept me from breaking down so far.

_Alright then,_ Kaiten said. _Let's go for it._

XXXXXXXX

Before anyone points out that I didn't end the fight with Maliris using Raining Swords, I'd like to point out three things: 1) She was missing three arms by the end and only had two swords anyway. 2) I like making crap up as I go along. 3) She was missing her bloody head. Makes it a little difficult to counterattack. :P

Hope you guys liked my thoughts on the Theory of Memoria. So far, no scientific journal has offered to publish my findings, but I can wait. God knows I've waiting long enough to publish my other work. -.- At least you can still buy my book! And for only 99 cents too! :D

Still, I was thinking about Memoria one day when I was out on a walk. I tried to recreate my thought process as best I could as I wondered exactly what Memoria was. The game didn't offer much help, and the online wiki was limited, but I like to think that I've offered a complete and roundabout explanation for everything within the world of Final Fantasy IX. Any questions/thoughts/debates on the topic are welcome.

And yes, I'm aware of just how much of a nerd I am. ^^


	3. Foreboding of Things Past

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's notes: What can I say about this month's chapter? Well, It took me a while to get the end to sound just right, but I think I got it. It took a while, between stress at work and trying to sell my new ebook (ON SALE NOW! KINDLES! NOOKS! 99 CENTS AMERICAN! BUY BUY BUY!). In the end though, I can only look at this chapter and smile.

Oh, and reinforce the deadbolts on my front door. :3

Chapter 3: Foreboding of Things Past.

XXXXXXXX

"Don't fall behind!" Zidane shouted as he took point once more. "The last thing we need right now is to get separated again."

It had taken another three hours before Zidane, Steiner and Amarant had all met up with us again. After crashing into the clock room, Zidane and Steiner had run out as fast as they could, but even though the bridge where we fought Maliris was a short walk away, the rest of us had been bored out of our minds waiting around. Vivi and Eiko were beginning to nod off and I had already pushed Maliris' corpse over the bridge for fun. I got a quick chuckle out of it, but unfortunately that was it.

At Dagger's insistence, Freya and I left to go find the others, but the clock room was empty when we got there, and we had no idea where to begin looking for Amarant. Zidane and Steiner claimed they never saw us, leading me to believe that this entire place really did work outside of normal reality. The vertical sidewalks from the game should have been enough to tell me that, but I still had to see it to believe it.

Time and physical status were still an unknown to us here. I could understand Zidane and Steiner getting caught in a time loop in the clock room and walking incredibly slowly. They would perceive themselves as running quickly, even though they would look like slugs to the rest of us. My question though was why couldn't Freya or I see them when we went to check on them? Shouldn't we have been able to see them ala bullet time, or did our memories have some effect in play?

The whole thing was starting to make me go cross-eyed.

Not long after Zidane and Steiner returned, Amarant showed up again. He hadn't been caught in any time loop, but was instead hurled through a stained-glass window and dislocated his shoulder upon impact inside a tower. With no direct walkway back to us, he had to shimmy his way back along windowsills and high tower walls using only one clawed gauntlet, an arm hanging dead at his side, and balls the size of his own head, dreadlocks included.

So we left the bridge, leading into a new building far down the line. An inviting pink light poured out of the doorway, basking us as we all piled inside. The next room was wide and open, with small fallen pillars decorating parts of it. Opposite the pillars was a small stage, like what Ruby had in her theatre in Alexandria. In the middle of the stage was a miniature replica of Alexandria Castle, reaching the ceiling.

"Isn't this… Alexandria?" Eiko was the first to ask. "What's it doing here?"

"It's magnificent," Dagger said, admiring the model. "It's exactly as I remember it. This place really was made from our memories."

"Be careful," Zidane said as Dagger approached the stage. "We don't know what any of this stuff does."

Just as soon as Zidane warned her, the backdrop behind the stage lit up like a movie theatre. Bahamut took the left side and Alexander took the right as the stage projected their epic battle. Blows were traded, briefly, before a great eye opened in the center of the stage, dwarfing both eidolons, no doubt the eye from the Invincible. There was a bright flash from the eye and soon the entire stage erupted in flame. Dagger jumped backwards, as the fire ate away at the castle, until the projection faded and the castle was left in a ruined heap, just like it had been after the battle.

Dagger just shied away as a tear fell down her cheek at the painful memory. Steiner froze up watching the scene unfold before him once more. Gasps and shocks echoed through the room. Even Amarant frowned at the ruins, more than he usually did. Only Quina was the one left confused and bewildered.

"What?" he asked with enthused curiosity. "What you see? Nothing happened. Castle only change. It not that different!"

"Quina?" Freya turned. "You didn't see the battle? The fire? Everything from the night we rescued Dagger just replayed itself!"

"Of course!" Zidane realized, slapping his forehead. "Of course Quina didn't see anything! He wasn't there when it happened! It's not in his memories!"

"So, if he didn't experience it before, he can't see it here?" Steiner asked. "Then why can we walk on these paths? Why did the clock room affect us? This…world…makes no sense!"

"They're just a physical manifestation," I added. It had been a while since I used any big, fun words. "The memories around us formed these walls, rooms, and probably even the natural laws this world relies upon, but as far as unique memories go, like what we just saw, someone who witnessed certain events can relive them. Consider a man who can turn ideas into bricks. He can take all his idea-bricks to make a wall. Each brick represents something unique, but only people he's revealed certain ideas to would understand what they saw on those certain unique bricks, and even then only a few bricks could be read."

By the end of my ramble, I had the entire group looking at me in utter confusion, like I was babbling like a madman. Maybe analogies were not my strongpoint.

"Sorry," I said after a moment of silenced confusion. "I've been doing a lot of thinking ever since we got here. Blame my philosophy class."

"No, it made sense," Freya said. "Every person on the planet unknowingly helped construct this world with their memories. There will be events we took part in that we can see, and there will be events unrelated to us that will appear only a simple masonry. Only venturing deeper will confirm this though."

At Freya's explanation, everyone nodded, finally understanding what we were getting into. Just when I thought Freya and I were starting to patch things up, she had to go and show me up. But at least she didn't seem to do it in spite of me… and my explanation was a bit lengthy. Perhaps I was getting ahead of myself.

"I didn't know you took a philosophy class," Steiner said, surprising me.

"I took all sorts of classes," I explained. It was true that I took an intro to philosophy class, but that was mostly out of a vain attempt to get into logical arguments so I could finally beat my buddy Ian in a debate. God knows he would need serious brain damage before I could ever best him. "But yeah, I had an interesting philosophy class at the university."

"Tell me, was Professor Marcain still teaching?" Steiner asked. "I haven't seen him in years. I really should go visit when this is over. And you and I would have a lot to discuss. I would love to debate a fellow student of Marcain's."

"Steiner? You took a philosophy class?" I asked, hiding my first question of 'you went to college?'

"Of course!" Steiner said proudly. "I graduated twelve years ago on my path to becoming a knight! Philosophy strengthens the mind and allows one to see more possibilities, an important trait for battle, which I will admit, I have seen you perform."

"Why didn't you mention any of this before? You knew I attended Alexandria University."

"Yes, but I didn't know you had the capacity to use your mind. I'm sure you've noticed that plenty of ruffians can afford their way into the university, peddle away their days and claim to graduate when they never learned a thing."

That summed up frat boys pretty well.

"Let's keep moving," Zidane said, already at the next doorway. "We've already lost enough tiiiaaAAAA—"

Zidane soon dropped out of sight. We all rushed to the door one by one and saw the room suddenly pitch down. Slick rocks covered in moss and mist sloped down to a pole sticking out of the ground at the bottom of the room. A small door was shut in place. Zidane had landed against the door, and not against the pole, much to my comedic dismay.

"Zidane?" Dagger called down into the dim room. "Are you alright?"

"Fine," he called back. "Just my pride. Watch your step."

I couldn't remember this room from the game at first. It didn't look like anything much at all. However, as we all descended, it all became clearer. I knew this room wasn't in the game, but it was important. This was the room where the two old men attacked me and injected Kaiten into my head.

I froze up. Only the pole in the middle of the floor kept me from falling over. I tried to hide my fear from the others as they all piled around. What would happen if they could see what happened here? I knew from later in Memoria that the others could see older memories. Was this memory old enough for them to see? It was a few months ago, but the scene here could be enough to royally screw me over.

"What is this place?" Eiko asked. "I don't remember it at all."

"This is familiar," Zidane said. I felt a chill run up my spine as he spoke. "Weren't we here once?"

"Isn't this Dali?" Vivi asked innocently. "Trevor, isn't this where those guys took you?"

_Damn you Vivi!_ I was sweating bullets, but the mist in the room made everything humid, so at least I had a cover. "Yeah, I think so," I answered hesitantly. "I was knocked out at the time, so I don't remember much."

Just then, three images appeared in the room. The first was my own, tied to the pole and lying unconscious. The next two I recognized at once. Saiko Garland and Hart Innural. They stood before me and looked down, as if analyzing me.

"_The General?_" Kaiten asked. "_This must have been right after we were combined._"

I watched the scene unfold for a moment, but my gaze rose to the others in the room. Most of them were looking inwards, to the center of the room. Could they see everything? None of them were standing where Garland and Innural were. Was that intentional?

"We may have played our trump card too early," Garland said. "He has met Zidane and is traveling with him. Both could turn into more of a threat than we had originally planned."

"Integration will take time," Innural said confidently. "And this host body is compatible with your lieutenant."

"The body might be, but what about the soul of the Earthling? Your theories are reaching."

"My theories are flawless!" Innural shouted, infuriated that someone would dare doubt him. "They are compatible! They will mesh! And we will recover from this mess that, may I remind you, is your fault to begin with! Kuja will be hunted down and die!"

There was still a hint of regret on Garland's face. He frowned, unconvinced that this had been the right choice. "I've sacrificed the strongest soldier I've ever known to help your project. If you fail this Innural, I will kill you."

"Ridiculous!" Innural said. "The Council of Vacles would—"

"The council is asleep!" Garland interrupted. "You and I are the only ones left of Terra, discounting the Genomes. Now be quiet. We need to reach the Invincible and return to Terra before the locals question us."

The memory faded after that. Garland, Innural, and even my unconscious self tied to the pole vanished, leaving only a thin trail of mist washing down the slide we entered the room on. I was petrified at first, but after a moment tried to look around at how the others were reacting. Some of them were talking amongst themselves. Was this it? Was I busted?

"Did anyone see anything?" Zidane was the first to ask.

"I didn't," Dagger answered.

"Not I," Steiner said.

"I've never even been to Dali!" Eiko told us.

Just as I thought everything was in the clear, Vivi turned up to me and asked, rather loudly, "What about you Trevor? Was this your memory?"

If I didn't like Vivi so much, I would have wanted to kill him on the spot.

"Yeah, I saw it," I said, thinking quickly. "It wasn't much, just two of the thugs who knocked me out and dragged me here."

"Was that it?" Dagger asked. "You look awfully pale. Did something else happen in the memory?"

"They were just talking about getting rid of me. One of them talked about killing me and hiding the body. I was thinking about what would have happened if you guys hadn't untied me when you did."

"Are you sure that's all?" Freya asked, suspicious as always. "Nothing else happened?"

"Freya, why would I lie?" I countered. "What else could it be? Tell me, what do you think happened?"

As the questioning stares turned to Freya, she hesitated for a moment and just shook her head. "Never mind," she said. It seemed like our budding friendship would take longer to bloom that I had hoped, but at least no one was looking at me anymore.

"If that's it, then let's keep going," Zidane said. "Kuja's waiting, and this room is getting cramped."

The doorway was small, so everyone walked single-file. I was the last one out, so I took one final look at the room. This was how Kaiten and I met. They were hardly good conditions, but out of it, I had met my closest friend. I never would have made it if it weren't for him. He helped me in combat, gave me advice, and even protected me from myself. Sure, he tried to kill me for a short stretch, but given his situation, I could sympathize. What would I do without him?

Garland and Innural, two of the last true Terrans in existence, had combined us. Kaiten never would have imagined his final mission would end with him waking up in someone else's head on another planet. What were his thoughts as he woke up? I remembered him saying that he went into shock, which was why he was silent for the first few days. His friends had died, and now his planet was likely destroyed because of Kuja. How did he react to seeing Garland once more?

_Hey Kaiten._

"_Yeah?"_

_You alright?_

"_No. Are you?_"

_I'm fine for now. I was just worried about you since… you know… seeing Garland again might have—_

"_That doesn't matter!_" Kaiten interrupted. "_The only thing that matters now is stopping Kuja! We can speculate after that!_"

_Geez, relax man. I was just worried about you since, well… you know…_

"_There's nothing to worry about,_" Kaiten said fatally. "_Lieutenant Kaiten Saeis died with his men in Ckelen-te-Clu one thousand years ago. I'm only a phantom._"

_A phantom? Kaiten, how can you say that after everything we've done together? We saved the others countless times, helped Seki get out of Treno, helped the Black Mages…_

"_The keyword there is 'we'. I haven't been my own person ever since my soul was ripped out of my body. It's always been the both of us. My body is gone. My legacy is gone. You're the only thing I have left, and as soon as our body fails, I'll truly have nothing._"

_It doesn't have to be like that!_ I said, now getting really worried for him. _I can tell the others about you. It would answer a lot of their questions, and you wouldn't be forgotten. We still have time before we get to Kuja, and I'm sure I can fill them in on everything you've done. Even the things you did on Terra!_

"_Trevor…just… Just don't. Let an old soldier have his final misery. I don't want to go out with a whimper. I want to die plunging a sword into Kuja's throat. Do you understand_?"

There was a long, uncomfortable silence between the two of us for a long time. Our party found its way into another room, this one with a storming sky and a river passing below. The room's design interfered with the other rooms we passed through and violated the laws of physics in that two objects couldn't occupy the same space at the same time. We had entered an entirely new realm with its own set of physical laws, and all I could think about were Kaiten's problems.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Zidane suddenly shouted down from the edge of a bridge.

I looked over the side, but I couldn't see anyone down below. I knew this was Dagger's memory and Zidane was yelling at the six-year old version of the princess, but I couldn't see it. The others seemed to have no trouble seeing the events playing out as well. Their memories were intertwined with the crystal now and common ties started to form. However, why couldn't I see the memory? Because I wasn't close enough to Dagger? Because I was from Earth? Both ideas made sense, but I played along and pretended I could see the events unfold anyway.

"You shouldn't go anywhere!" Zidane shouted down again. "There's a storm!"

I looked down, but still couldn't see anything. I knew the little girl was now joined by her mother, both dressed heavily in soaking wet cloaks. They ran with their supplies to a small boat, too small to survive the treacherous sea.

"Guys!" Zidane shouted to us. "We have to stop them! They're gonna get killed!"

"Zidane?" Freya asked. "We can't do anything. It's just a memory."

"I know, but I—wait…" Zidane grabbed his head, as if it was going numb. "Right, it's just a memory. But I felt like I was there. I guess I got caught up in it."

"Are you alright?" Steiner asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry for worrying you all."

"Zidane?" Dagger asked. "How did you see that memory? It wasn't yours, was it?"

Zidane crossed his arms in thought for a moment and shook his head. "No, I don't think so."

"I thought not. That was my memory."

"What? Then how could I see it? Did anyone else see it?"

One by one, everyone either nodded or just said yes. I joined them to avoid suspicion. I had seen the memory in a game once already, so it wasn't entirely a lie, was it?

"Hey Garland!" Zidane called into the sky. "What's going on? Can you hear me?"

Zidane was only met with silence. I wondered if Garland could hear us at all, or if he was already dead. It was nothing short of a miracle that he was even still alive, in whatever form he existed in. Zidane called out for Garland once more, but was met with more silence.

"Nothing," Zidane said after a minute. "Let's just keep going. Let's just hope we're getting close."

The bridge over the river led to a long staircase. The top was obscured by clouds, but since the clouds were only fifty feet above our heads, it wasn't too hard a climb.

Once we passed through the clouds, we reached a new, wide platform, with only a few fallen pillars crumbling around us. We were immediately greeted by an enormous, terrifying eye. Its iris was burning red, like it was caught on fire. I recognized it immediately as the eye from the Invincible. Could this room be from Garland's first visit to Gaia? Clouds swirled quickly, violently, as if the eye were starting a tornado around itself.

"What is that thing?" Zidane asked once everyone was on the platform.

"That eye…" Dagger muttered. "That's the same eye I saw that night at sea!"

"The eye from the Invincible?" Freya asked. "What a monstrous sight."

"Hey, don't insult my airship."

Everyone turned, looking at me either with confusion or with surprise that I had said something so daring.

"_Your_ airship?" Freya asked. "It takes a lot of audacity to claim something like that."

"Well, I'm the best pilot. I got us through those dragons, remember?"

"That doesn't give you the right to—"

"Dibs!"

Freya paused and gauged me curiously. "What?"

"Dibs. I called dibs. That means the ship is mine."

"Trevor, that ship could do a lot of good in Alexandria or Lindblum," Dagger said. "Maybe Uncle Cid could look at it and create even more advanced airships from the Invincible's design."

"Aww, come on! I even got everyone off of Terra with it too! Think of all the good I could do with it!"

"Trevor, I don't think you—"

A loud roar broke through the air, followed by two accompanying screams. We all turned our heads to the sky, looking for the swarm of monsters that was heading our way. The roaring got closer, until it was right on top of us. The din was so loud that my eyes started to shake and a sharp ring started bellowing in my ears. I had to squeeze my hands over my ears to keep myself from going mad.

Suddenly, the roaring stopped. We all began to settle down again, when a large green shape crashed down onto a pillar before us. My eyes had to adjust to its size at first, but when the smoke cleared, I saw a massive dragon. In almost every detail, he looked exactly like the wind guardian that Steiner, Vivi and I had to kill in the wind shrine. Except this monster was leaner, taller, and had three heads. That explained the screaming we had all heard.

"So, you defeated Maliris," the dragon spoke. "For Tiamat, there is only victory."

"Who are you?" Zidane shouted up at the towering beast. "Why are you getting in our way?"

"Such frivolous questions from the weak," Tiamat said. "You will all be stopped here!"

"You're wrong!" Freya shouted. "We killed Maliris, and if you don't leave, we'll kill you too!"

"Kill me?" Tiamat laughed. "Maliris was weak and overconfident. She hadn't even mastered the use of her own arms. But I…" Tiamat spread his wings in a glorious display of power. "I have mastered my wings, and your journey ends here."

"You, beast!" Steiner said, raising a sword to Tiamat's face. "I fought and vanquished your other form back in the Wind Shrine! You were unable to stop us there and you will not stop us here!"

Despite Steiner's valor, Tiamat just had a laugh at the knight's expense. "I'm far improved upon that weaker form."

"Vivi," Steiner said over his shoulder. "Please give me your magic."

Vivi nodded confidently, closing his eyes and wielding his staff before himself. "Just give me a minute."

"Trevor, you fought the wind guardian before, right?" Dagger asked. "What was it like?"

"Terrible," I answered. "The thing flew around everywhere. It was nearly impossible to hit and if it weren't for a last minute plan from Steiner and Vivi's magic, we wouldn't have made it."

"So, should we use magic to kill this monster?"

"That might work, if you can hit him," I said. "Start with the wings. Take away his flight."

"You heard him!" Dagger said to Eiko and Quina. "Charge up whatever ranged attacks you can and aim for the wings!"

Meanwhile, Vivi and Steiner were working on their own plan. Across the room, Vivi finished charging the knight's sword, coating it with a bright orange tint.

"That's a Firaga spell," Vivi said cautiously. "Be careful not to get caught in the blast."

"I'll be fine," Steiner said, holding the blade beside his head with the tip aimed at Tiamat's throat.

"You think you could reach me with a sword?" Tiamat's voice echoed. "How could you hope to when your world starts spinning around itself?"

With a wave of his hand, Tiamat summoned a tornado in the middle of the platform. Suddenly, fighting a wind monster in a room with no walls and a bottomless chasm all around us seemed like a horrid idea. I resolved to forgive my ancient enemies, the walls, and swore to stop cursing them if I got out of this alive.

The spell lasted only a few second, but it knocked everyone down and took us for a spin. We all grabbed onto whatever we could, each other, cracks in the ground, or the fallen pillar that I smacked into. The wind blew us towards the edge, but as I looked around, everyone seemed to be hanging on well enough. As the wind settled and the dust dropped, only Tiamat and Steiner were left standing. Thank god for such heavy armor.

"You could never be strong enough to stop us!" Steiner yelled valiantly. "Take this!"

With a battle cry, Steiner launched himself forth, sword still glowing with power. Bravely, he leapt into the air, swinging for the low-hanging middle head of the dragon. At the end of his swing, as he crashed back to the ground, an enormous pillar of fire overtook him. I lost sight of both him and Tiamat behind the plume for a moment and even cheered, thinking the dragon had been hurt. However, my elation turned into dread seconds later when Tiamat flew out of the fire and smoke a moment later.

Steiner had missed his attack and now stood at the end of the platform. The Firaga sword had knocked down a pillar, but Tiamat was flying around unscathed.

"Not bad knight," the dragon mocked. "You're the only one strong enough to escape my gusts."

"Your predecessor could never knock me down either!" Steiner shouted.

"Oh really?" Tiamat asked with a wave of his hand. "Then I wonder if he could do this?"

Suddenly, a yellow flash of light washed over Steiner. He began hovering inches off the ground, helpless to the Float spell placed upon him. The heavy armor could no longer help Steiner as he kicked helplessly for something to grab on to.

Tiamat soared to the other side of the platform. Each head grinned as his chest began to inflate. In the game, Tiamat had the ability to take one character at a time out of play by blowing them off the platform. If that happened here, we wouldn't just return to normal after the fight. I let go of the platform and tried to rush the distance between Steiner and myself.

"Let's see how well you fly," Tiamat chuckled, before blowing his blimp-sized chest out all at once. The column of air shot straight for the floating knight, and I was too far to do anything.

"Steiner!" Dagger called out in fear of her longest-known friend.

Steiner grit his teeth, facing his death with a quiet dignity. Just when it looked like it was all over for him, a flash of red and green jumped in front of the knight, dragging him down and latching on to the nearest pillar. The wind passed harmlessly by, kicking up loose rubble, but leaving the floating knight alone.

"Amarant?" Steiner blurted out, shocked as the rest of us.

"Don't get used to it," the bandit said. He had saved Steiner by pulling him down with one set of claws, then digging the other set deep into a pillar beside them.

"A good effort," Tiamat laughed. "But how long until another one of you falls?"

Zidane, who stood in the middle of the platform, held his blade impatiently. "Someone get him down here so the rest of us can fight!"

"Working on it!" Dagger cried out from the gang of casters. I saw her pull a garnet out from her pocket. "Is everyone ready?"

"I'm ready!" Eiko said.

"Aya!" Quina nodded, tongue slapping against his chest.

"I'm okay," Vivi said.

"Good! Attack all at once!" Dagger commanded.

Quina let loose the first bolts of magic. Literally. Sharp, blue beams of light sprouted from his heart as he cast Matra Magic. They all coursed towards TIamat, who took one look at the intimidating magic and started flying away as fast as he could. However, he didn't make it far before another blue sting of light twisted in the air before him. Eiko cast Holy and attempted to pierce the dragon through the chest. However, Tiamat banked at the last second and the two spells collided, blowing into a shockwave high in the air. The blast blinded us for a moment, almost as if we had created another sun.

As Tiamat flew through the air with nary a scratch on him, I was starting to wonder if we would ever hurt him. Freya might have been able to jump at him, but if she got her angle of reentry wrong, or if Tiamat hit her while in the air, then she could plummet to her death off of the platform. I wasn't even sure if Kaiten's Arc Storm could hit this bastard.

"Firaga!" came the sudden cry. Tiamat had to spread his wings wide and screech to a halt as the air exploded in front of him. The flames licked at his scales, singeing his skin. However, the attack only lasted seconds, and Tiamat was able to avoid most of it. He soared around the spherical blast, escaping the fire with minor wounds.

I couldn't believe it. It had taken this long into the fight, Steiner nearly died and so far, we had warmed the boss up. That was it. We had a better chance of leaving someone behind to distract him while the rest went on to fight Kuja. Then again, I worried that if Tiamat was giving us this much trouble, what would the other Chaos Guardians be like? Or Kuja, for that matter?

"Dagger, he's not paying attention!" Eiko shouted. "Do it!"

I saw Dagger concentrating with the garnet on her staff. With a spark and a flash of light, her summoning ritual was complete. A well of fire opened up outside of the platform and Bahamut, the King of Dragons, soared through as a fireball. Wings opened up, horns grew, and within seconds, we had a dragon that could easily match Tiamat.

"Oh, is this supposed to challenge me?" Tiamat taunted.

Bahamut and Tiamat stared each other down, each sizing the other up. One looked noble and enigmatic, while the other was monstrous and demonic. As much as I respected Bahamut's power though, I held my breath, unsure if he could pull something like this off.

"Yus aan mey," Bahamut said in a language I couldn't understand. Was it Draconic?

"So the king would criticize me?" Tiamat laughed. "Sorry, but I was created recently by someone else. I have no reason to follow you."

"Ruz yus fen dii," Bahamut said fatally.

"We'll see who dies," Tiamat grinned, spreading his wings wide. "The demon created by the crystal, or the bitch king controlled by the will of humans. How far the noble dragon kind has fallen!"

With wounded pride, Bahamut reared his head back and erupted in a roar that shook the entire room. He and Tiamat rushed each other, crashing into each other with explosive rage. Claws tore at skin, fangs sank into flesh, and flare and wind magic blasted over each other's shoulders, only sometimes hitting their mark. We would be lucky not to get caught up in the destruction.

As the dragons raged above, I had to pull Vivi aside. There was always a chance Bahamut could lose and we had to be prepared just in case. "Vivi!" I had to shout to draw the kid's attention from the fight above. "VIVI!"

"Wha?" he blurted out. "What is it?"

"We're gonna need something to counter Tiamat. He's an even match for Bahamut!"

"What are you talking about?" Eiko shouted. "Bahamut's gonna tear this punk into pieces!"

"And my magic is too slow anyway," Vivi admitted shamefully. "You saw how the second dragon was able to get out of the way."

"Eiko, it's always good to have a backup plan," I scolded. "And Vivi, only your third tier magic is too slow. You didn't try anything else yet."

"But what else can I hit him with?" the little mage asked. "I don't have any stronger magic!"

"What about your basic Fire spell?" Eiko asked. "Remember when you helped me cook dinner in my kitchen? You just cast and BAM! It was there!"

"Exactly," I said, nodding to Eiko. "Vivi, your Fire spell can transport itself so quickly that Tiamat won't have time to react."

"But what good will that do?" Vivi asked. "It's not a very strong spell and won't really hurt him."

"Kill it with bug bites," I said. "Besides, I'm sure your magic is strong enough to tear the hell out of his wings if you can hit them a couple of times."

Just then, there was a blood-curdling scream from the air. I looked up as the others gasped in horror. The battle between the dragons had concluded. One of Tiamat's heads was beaten and bleeding, hanging limply to the side, but it was still grinning. The other two heads fangs had a strong grip on Bahamut's throat.

"I told you…" Tiamat's limp head chuckled as his other heads tore into Bahamut's jugular. Blood flowed like a waterfall, washing Tiamat's heads with red as Bahamut gasped for air. "The old age of dragons… is done."

With one more tear, Bahamut's throat was ripped open. His body was so mangled that entire strings of muscle dangled loose as he plummeted back to the platform. His body started to disintegrate into red, matching the blood still pouring out of his neck.

"Bahamut, return!" Dagger cried out. I wasn't sure if it was too late, but for a moment, I wondered if Eidolons could truly die. My heart grew heavy with concern for the Dragon King as he was absorbed back into the garnet from which he had been summoned.

Up above, Tiamat relished his victory. A white wind splashed over his beaten form, wiping most of his wounds away and repairing his lagging head. "A fool's errand," he gloated. "Now you see how futile resistance is. None of you shall leave this place."

"Get ready to counter him!" Zidane shouted, trying to rally us as best he could. "Someone cut his wings off! Do something!"

Zidane was starting to panic, as was everyone else. My own pulse was racing so quickly that I couldn't hold my short swords steady. They shook intensely, bouncing the blade so hard that I couldn't even hide it. I tried to tell myself that I was just excited, pumped up for battle, but I knew I was just lying to myself.

"I'll start with you," Tiamat said, pointing a clawed finger at Zidane. "One by one, you will all fall. That one with the tail shall be the first example."

Tiamat raised a fist again, casting his spell. Within seconds, the gravity around Zidane was reversed and he began to hover uncontrollably. The Float spell took away his grasp on the ground and made him Tiamat's plaything, just as Steiner had been earlier. Zidane kicked at the ground and swung his blades, trying to latch onto the ground, but he was just wasting his time.

"This one is the leader, isn't he?" Tiamat said, situating himself on the far edge of the platform. "When he dies, the rest will follow, just like good little soldiers."

Tiamat started to puff his chest up and it was obvious what he planned to do. Even though Steiner and Amarant tried to get near Tiamat to stop him, the great dragon was able to bat them away like bugs. They had been the closest to him and no one else could stop the attack. It was going to happen… but maybe Zidane wouldn't have to die.

I took off like a bullet as Tiamat launched the tremendous gust of air. I ran along the edge of the platform, trying to intercept Zidane as he literally flew head over heels, tumbling through the air out of control. The blond hair and curling tail were all I could see as I concentrated on saving the first friend I made landing on Gaia. I couldn't let Zidane die like this.

I wouldn't.

Zidane saw me and tried to hold out an arm, reaching for me. "Trevor!" he called out, voice wobbling in the twisting wind.

"Zidane!" I shouted back as I neared him. I stretched out to grab him, leaping at the last instant to bring him down. Just as the thief was about to tumble to his death, we crashed into each other in a full on body slam, still in the middle of a wind tunnel. Thinking quickly, I jammed a short sword into the ground without even aiming. My vision faded as I fought to keep my eyes open against the thick winds.

It turned out luck was on my side for a moment as the blade sank in between the platform and a fallen pillar. I could hear something crack as Zidane slammed into the platform. An ankle, or maybe a rib? My mind raced to recover all the information that I could. If I had focused, I would have noticed exactly how close to the edge we were, or how weak my grip was on my own short sword.

"Trevor!" Zidane called out as he held the stuck short sword in both hands at the cross guard. I could see his eyes tightly shut against the gale. I could barely hear him. "Hold on … longer! I thin… most done!"

I would have tried to hold on, but I never accounted for just how strong these winds were. I let my nerves take over when I charged in and wasn't truly prepared for what I was getting into. My grip was failing me, but that wasn't important. I had saved Zidane and that was all that mattered…

Zidane was watching me out of the corner of his eye. He shouted something and he saw my grip fail, but I couldn't hear him anymore. I slowly, very slowly, fell backwards, flying like I was caught in a rushing stream. My body seemed to lift from underneath myself, gently carrying me. There was nothing I could do, but it was a comforting feeling. Was this my final fight after all?

I saw the edge of the platform come and go from underneath me. Just as the edge passed by, the wind stopped. If I had held on another two seconds, it wouldn't have to end like this, but I was going to die anyway. Better to die saving someone else, I supposed.

I fell, shutting my eyes, afraid of the pain any impact might bring. It came a second later though, when I crashed into the sloping side of the platform. Dirt and rock dug into my skin, grinding it away. A nasty taste filled my mouth. I recognized some of it was blood. The other part must have been the side of the platform. I coughed up red spittle as I clung onto whatever I could, finally coming to a stop after several feet.

My hands bled, weakly grasping at bumpy rocks in the walls. I moved as little as I could, gathering my wits together and trying to figure out how to get myself out of this mess. The first thing I noticed was that everything hurt all over. I must have landed harder than I thought. The second thing I noticed was—_god dammit everything hurts!_

My feet weren't touching anything. They must have been dangling underneath the platform. My arms were already exhausted from supporting my entire weight and from fighting the wind tunnel. Was Zidane safe at least?

"TREVOR!" came the cry from up above. Ever so slowly, trying my best to hug the wall, I looked up, grinding my face into the wall some more as I moved. Zidane was above me, looking over the edge for me. There was twenty feet between us; far too much for either of us to climb. "Are you alright? Stay there! We'll get you!"

He'll get me? With an enemy attacking who moved faster that any we had faced before whom we hadn't even touched yet? And even Bahamut had failed to inflict that much damage. Tiamat was able to heal that in a matter of seconds. No, they didn't have any time to waste in saving me. That would only get more of them killed.

Softly, I tried to call out. Breathing was scary enough when an inflating chest might be enough to push me over the edge. My arms burned red with effort, and I knew I couldn't hold out forever. "Zidane…" I called out, but with my fear, it was so quiet that even I didn't hear. I wasn't sure if I said anything at all.

"Zidane!" I tried again. This time my voice carried through. I saw Zidane's head pop back out, his face twisting in fear for me.

"Zidane, I—"

It was too much.

Maybe it was the sound of my voice, or maybe my muscles gave out on me, but my grip finally gave way. I felt my fingers tighten into a fist as I tried to grab a new handhold, but there were only more jagged rocks. I looked up as Zidane shouted something at me.

And then he was gone.

The platform rose up above me as I fell below it. I scrambled to grab something—_anything_! But there was nothing there. Only a black, dead sky that I found myself plummeting into. A horizon that seemed to raise its arms in greeting, just to swallow me whole.

"NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!" I screamed. "NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!"

My arms flapped wildly. What did I hope to achieve? I was a human. An Earthling brought here by some unknown technology. There was no magic device that would save me here. No guardian angels. No gods to pluck me from the sky.

"ZIDANE!" I shouted as loud as I could. "KILL KUJA! SAVE EVERYONE!"

I looked up as the platform. Already, it was shrinking, becoming just a dot in the background. Could they hear me? How was the battle faring? Were they winning? Could they win? I realized as I fell that all I wanted was for them to survive. In that grim moment, I accepted my fate. Perhaps, if I landed on something, it would break my neck. Dour as it was, it sounded far more pleasant that dying of my body's rot.

_Kaiten?_ I asked. I was greeted only by silence at first. _I'm sorry. I fucked up. I didn't mean for this to happen._

"_It's alright,_" he finally said. His voice was calm, unwavering. He had accepted a second death a long time ago. "_Perhaps it's better this way_."

_But is there anything you can do? Maybe… sprout wings, or learn to fly, or maybe we—_

"_Trevor, that's enough. We've failed, but you saved the monkey. Without him, the group would fall apart and the rest of them wouldn't stand a chance against Kuja. You saved all of them. You should be proud._"

_But… but we're about to die!_

"_Then reflect on your life. Die with dignity_."

I looked back at the platform. There was a bright light, like an enormous fire blasting into the air. I could barely distinguish it in the distance anymore, but the others were still alive. Good. I saw other memories pass me by far away, but from what I could tell, I was falling into the deepest hole into the darkest depths of hell.

I craned my head up, looking down into the pit. What exactly was down there? I already knew Memoria didn't work on practical, or even really possible designs. Maybe there was a way out. Maybe I could land in an ocean memory somewhere, or maybe I could find a way back up to the others.

For a moment, I hoped against hope, but then I gazed back into the pit. There was nothing there. Nothing at all. The platform above was now gone from sight. I just sighed, patting my stomach and accepting death whenever it came.

_Hey Kaiten?_

"…_Yeah?_"

_You remember the first thing you ever said to me?_

"_Hmm… that was a long time ago. I had just started reading your memory books to find out what kind of person you were. Wasn't it something about… painting? No, cross-stitching._"

_That's it._

"_Well, what about it?_"

I had a laugh at my own expense. _I never finished it._

Kaiten paused a moment and laughed with me. "_Too bad._"

That was when the end finally came. I saw a black set of rocks below as I soared towards them faster than I cared to guess. I shut my eyes and only sighed as my head cracked open against the ground.

There was only darkness.


	4. Death of a Hero

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's notes: Nope, I'm not gonna do it. I'm not gonna apologize for last month's cliffhanger. Know why? Because I'm evil and it's fun to watch people scream at me! :3

Usual self-promotion for my book and all. Remember, if you give me money, I can go professional and keep you guys entertained for the next couple of years. XD Micro God has several more books to go.

Chapter 4: Death of a Hero.

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"TREVOR!" Zidane called again as his friend fell into the darkness below. "TREVOR!"

Flying above, Tiamat only had a laugh at the dismay brought forth by his power. He knew he had stuck a deep blow for all the survivors. They would all fall one by one. The only problem was deciding who would fall next.

"Is he still there?" Dagger asked, rushing to the edge of the platform. She didn't even think of the danger of falling herself. She was still shocked that one of their own could have died so close to the ending. Frantically, he peered over the edge, head panning left and right. "Where is he? I don't see him!"

"Dagger…" Zidane struggled to say. "Trevor is—"

"Maybe I can climb down and get him," she said, pivoting over the side of the platform and lowering herself. "I'll be back."

"DAGGER!" Zidane shouted. He grabbed her arms and violently yanked her back on to the platform. He held her close, afraid to lose her too.

"Zidane, let me go!" she shouted. "Trevor's down there alone! We have to save him!"

"Dagger, don't," Zidane said, hating the words as they passed his lips. "Trevor's… Trevor's dead…"

"No, he ISN'T!" Dagger defied. "No, no, no…no…"

Her shoulder heaved with wet sobs, soaking the corner of Zidane's shirt. How could they have come all this way, risked so much, discovered so many things, only to lose such a dear friend in the end. It wasn't right and it wasn't fair. Why did Kuja have to destroy so much? Dagger hadn't felt this much despair since her mother died, another victim of Kuja's.

"Dagger, we have to go," Zidane said, standing and bringing the scared queen up with him. She looked up at him, angry that he could be so calm. However, between Zidane's taut face and strong grip, Dagger could tell that he was fighting back the same tears that she was already crying. She needed to stand beside him and be strong too.

They still had a world to save.

"Is Trevor…" Vivi asked slowly. "Is he actually…?"

Tiamat's laughter boomed through the air. His heavy cackles soaked in their sorrow, getting high from elation. Everyone turned their attention to him. In one instant, everything became drastically clear to the party. They no longer wanted to kill Tiamat just to continue their journey.

"Horrid monster…" Steiner found himself muttering. He kept his guard up, taking point against Tiamat. Freya and Amarant took point on his left and right. "If you weren't such a coward, you would come down and fight us on even ground!"

Tiamat narrowed his eyes. "If you weren't such a fool, you never would have come here in the first place."

"I'll make sure you die choking on those words!"

Vivi, however, was having a much harder time with Trevor's demise. He had known death when his grandpa died, but that was when he was young and confused. Their relationship had been brief. But Trevor was like an older brother, always watching out for Vivi and giving advice. Even moments ago, Trevor had been right by Vivi's side, giving advice and tactics. He had seen Vivi's potential in a way that no one else could. And now that confident, supportive voice was gone forever.

_Gone forever…_ Vivi kept telling himself. He wanted to look over his shoulder and see Trevor standing behind him, but it was no use. Trevor was gone, and he was going to have to get used to it.

_But I don't want to…_ Vivi told himself, choking back tears. His friend was gone. His friend was dead. He… was never coming back… Vivi had never felt like this before. With tear-soaked eyes, he glared up at Tiamat as the dragon hovered above the platform.

"You bastard!" Vivi cried out. "You killed my best friend!"

The first spark of silver rocketed out of Vivi's chest, and soon a blinding fountain of silver light followed, engulfing his entire body. He drank the power in, as the light came down and blended into him. His clothes, his hat, and even traces of his skin glowed as Trance overtook him. Raw energy crackled off of him. The others soon backed away, unwilling to stand in Vivi's way.

With a roar, Vivi shot forth. Despite being a magic user, he wanted to rip Tiamat apart with his bare hands. He wanted to feel the visceral fury and the blood running through his fingers. But he remembered Trevor's last words to him. Slow, strong attacks wouldn't work against this enemy. Vivi would have to try something else.

As he neared the dragon, Vivi found himself running up an inclined pillar. Tiamat's entire body came into view and Vivi reacted immediately. He charged up spells that he hadn't cast in a long time, channeling one through his staff. However, the magic was so raw and came so readily that a second spell found its way into his hand. Subconsciously wielding two spells at once, Vivi leapt off the pillar, flying through the air as his magic launched itself.

"FIRE!" Vivi called out. Instantly, the air around Tiamat's wings heated up and exploded. Tiamat roared in surprise rather than pain, but the damage was evident. Vivi's attacks weren't very strong, but neither were Tiamat's wings.

Tiamat snarled and turned his attention to the young mage. "You little—"

"FIRE! FIRE!" Vivi kept calling out, channeling two spells at once. He stepped forward determinately, melting Tiamat's wings and sending shivers down the dragon's spine. The beast danced in the air, flailing as he tried to avoid the spells, while failing to keep his altitude. He gave one mighty flap of his wings to get away, but one more hole in each wing made that impossible. The skin that had once been his wings had all been shredded or burned away. His thrashing only caused more damage. With one enormous crash, the great Chaos Guardian collapsed into the platform.

"You little brat!" Tiamat said, pulling himself out of his shallow crater. "You destroyed my wings! I'll kill you next!"

Reacting quickly, Tiamat puffed his chest out and prepared to finish Vivi the same way he had finished Trevor. Snapping all three heads forward at once, Tiamat launched his attack. Vivi didn't have any defense against the wind tunnel and could barely keep his hat on his head, much less stay on his feet. Within seconds, his raging advance was halted and he was blown backwards, much like Zidane had been. With the edge of the platform coming up, Vivi knew he had no way to save himself.

"NO MORE!"

With a shout, Freya used all the strength in her legs to leap forward. She snapped Vivi up in her grip and turned inside the wind tunnel. With no control herself, she would have been swept up as well, but with a swing of her polearm, she anchored herself in an embedded pillar. With her weapon in one arm and Vivi in the other, it was only a matter of endurance until the wind ended.

Vivi desperately clung to his hat and staff as the wind threatened to sweep him away. It was a struggle to keep his eyes open even a little, but when he did, he noticed something important. Despite all the other times he had attacked, Tiamat was stationary. Without his wings to escape with, he was a large, likely slow target. Vivi started to channel his magic again.

"Just give up!" Tiamat shouted at Freya's persistent grip. His other heads snapped and bit at Steiner and Amarant as they tried to fight through, but their efforts were in vain. Tiamat wasn't about to allow them to flank him. However, for all his efforts, he never would have imagined that the next attack would come from the front.

"BLIZZAGA!"

Suddenly, Tiamat felt a chill from underneath him, flowed immediately by a sharp tearing in his throat. He stopped his attack and twisted to get away, but he saw an enormous icicle ripping through the ground. It had torn through his central neck, destroying the air sac that allowed him to use his breath attack. The sudden assault left him breathless and spasming, searching for air as he started to breath through his second and third throat. He could easily survive the assault, but his central air sac was gone and his breath attack disabled.

As the wind died, Freya and Vivi dropped. The dragon knight landed gracefully, brushing her hair back. She set Vivi down at her side just as his Trance faded and his colors returned to normal. His rage was still fresh within him, but when he saw the gaping hole in Tiamat's neck, he felt himself start to calm down slightly.

"This stops nothing," Tiamat cried out. Blood pooled all around him from the hanging skin on his neck. Blood dripped and skin cracked from the crusty sores on his wings. He folded the wings back as best he could, but groaned in pain as chunks of dried blood flecked off. "I still have my magic and my claws. That is enough!"

To accentuate his point, he extended his claws and took a swipe at Amarant. But Tiamat was in pain and Amarant was flexible. As the claws came down, Amarant dodged to the side. Tiamat left a deep gouge in the rock where the bandit had been standing.

"Not even close," Amarant laughed. "You really suck at this!"

"Be quiet!" Tiamat shouted. He turned his entire body to face the dreadlocked man. However, he only made it two steps before he felt an intense heat burst inside his flank.

"Climhazard!"

With a powerful strike, Steiner cut deep into Tiamat's back leg. The sword magic exploded at the tip of the blade, burning the muscle and blowing the skin open. Tiamat's leg collapsed as Steiner retracted his sword, pulling several strands of muscles out as well. The dragon dragged his leg along, but because of his light frame, he was able to stand on his three remaining legs. One head stayed trained on Amarant while the other bent around to focus on Steiner.

"Knight…" Tiamat muttered. "You would stab your opponent in the back? Does your code of honor mean so little?"

"What would you know of honor?" Steiner asked. "You only exist to destroy. You are a twisted monster created by a twisted man. You've murdered my comrade. The code only exists for fighting other warriors. It does NOT apply to BEASTS!"

Tiamat immediately reared his head back and aimed to bite Steiner in half. "I'll destroy you!"

"Shock!"

The lightning shot forth and hit Tiamat in his open maw. The attack blasted and blistered the inside of Tiamat's mouth, leaving a thin trail of smoke passing out of his lips. The dragon tried to talk, but only muttered garbled words. His tongue was burned and it hurt to move his lips. Two heads were torn and ruined. The only remaining head gave Steiner a hateful glare as the beast repurposed his attack pattern. He swiped again, this time catching Amarant off guard and sending him away.

"Twister," Tiamat said, wasting no words. A sudden wind burst opened over the further half of the platform. Dagger, Quina, Freya and Vivi were soon swept up by a wind gust as a tornado formed around them. Freya was able to sink her polearm into a nearby pillar, but missed grabbing Vivi as he flew away. The three remaining casters were spun higher and higher until the wind magic dissipated. All three were launched into the air and left to the mercy of gravity.

"Dagger!" Zidane shouted. He ran underneath her as the summoner fell in a streak of orange. With a soft crash, she fell into his arms, knocking the thief to the ground. Zidane coughed for breath, but Dagger recovered quickly and rolled off of him.

"Zidane, are you alright?" she asked. Her hand traced his cheek, trying to rouse him. He looked up at her from the ground. There was a moment of silence as he pressed his hand into hers. Dagger was glad to see him well, but blushed as he grabbed her hand. She pulled away, standing quickly and readying her staff. After a quick Cure spell cast on Zidane, the thief stood as well.

"Thanks Dagger," Zidane nodded before heading towards Tiamat.

"Uh… you're welcome," Dagger said after a moment. She watched him charge and readied her white magic. However, chanting from behind her distracted her for a moment. She turned and saw Eiko holding a feather up to her flute.

"Eiko?" Dagger asked. "What are you doing?"

"What's it look like?" Eiko asked. "I'm summoning the Phoenix! Now let me concentrate!"

After a few more seconds, a small fire sparked on the ground. As Eiko finished the ritual, an enormous bird, coated in flames and a plume of colorful feathers emerged. It called out once before setting its sights on the wounded Tiamat. Flapping its wings, it soared higher, aiming for its target.

"No wait!" Eiko called out. "I didn't summon you to attack him!"

The Phoenix halted its flight, hovering several feet above the platform. Each flap of its wings brought heated air down onto the two girls as they gazed up at the magnificent bird.

"A friend of ours fell over the edge of the platform," Eiko started explaining. "We can't see the bottom, so we don't know if he's okay. I need you to fly into the darkness and save him!"

"Eiko…" Dagger said hesitantly. She didn't want to say the words, but they were true. "You know he's—"

"You don't know that!" the obstinate girl cried out. "I already lost my parents and grandparents! I don't want anyone else to die!"

Dagger knew she should have stopped Eiko. They needed everyone in this fight and having her distracted with a fool's errand would only hinder the rest of them. However, deep within herself, Dagger wanted Eiko to be right. She couldn't stop the little girl even if she wanted to.

"Go, quickly!" Eiko told the Phoenix. The giant bird roared in agreement, bursting into a pillar of flames before flying over the edge and out of sight within seconds.

Meanwhile, Steiner was coming to grips with Tiamat. The massive dragon still had plenty of weapons at his disposal. Amarant kept an arm distracted, duking it out as best he could, but Steiner was caught up between the second clawed arm and a row of fangs that bit down over his shoulder. Tiamat appeared to be winning with the knight's arm within his mouth.

"This is the end," Tiamat said, jaws still shut tight over Steiner's arm and armor. He brought his arm up to shred the armor off the knight, but a swipe of a broadsword kept Tiamat at bay.

"For one of us!" Steiner agreed. "And I am not him!"

Steiner swung his crossguard hard into the dragon's teeth, striking at the gum line. Blood trickled down between fangs, but the dragon persisted. One more smash broke a fang out, but twenty more still kept his arm trapped. His position seemed fatal.

"Smash all my teeth out," Tiamat said. "It doesn't matter. You will still fall." He bit down harder, bending the armor on Steiner's shoulder. The metal warped and pressed in, cutting off circulation to his arm.

As Steiner started to give way to the pain, Freya and Zidane jumped into the fray. The dragon knight went high, jumped onto Tiamat's back while Zidane stayed low, parrying the dragon's arm and keeping Steiner safe. A quick slash to the back of the neck from Freya made Tiamat roar in pain. He dropped Steiner, who landed in a metallic heap.

"Guys, get out of there!" Eiko screamed from across the platform. "Dagger's summoning again!"

"Come on!" Amarant shouted, grabbing Steiner by the arm and hoisting him to his feet. The knight was winded, but not enough to stop him from escaping. Freya and Zidane were right on their heels as Tiamat's neck drooped low at the cut. The dragon crawled along the ground, shuffling by on his weakened arms, but with his damaged neck, he could barely tell where he was going.

It was too late for Tiamat. By the time the four heroes who had been assaulting him were clear, Dagger summoned the Dragon King once more. "Bahamut, come forth!" she called.

Once again, a well of flames opened up upon the platform. The fires spun and mixed, forming the body of Bahamut. Tiamat groped the floor blindly, eventually coming to the edge of the well, just as it evaporated. The wounded demon looked up to see his former opponent towering over him, mouth glowing as an attack charged.

"So…" Tiamat muttered. "Is this it?"

The answer came as Bahamut's Mega Flare exploded into the floor, blasting through Tiamat and even the platform. The bright blue light blinded the party for a moment as the ground shook. Everyone covered their eyes, but in seconds, the attack had finished. Bahamut allowed himself to dissolve back into the ether, leaving a massive hole through the platform where Tiamat had once laid.

"Is it… dead?" Vivi asked.

Quina, in all his curiosity, rushed to the side of the freshly burned hole. He craned his head around quickly, then turned with a wide grin. "I not see him!"

There was a collective sigh of relief and even a few cheers from the heroes. It was a hard fight, but they had overcome. Vivi, Steiner and Amarant were all spent and had to sit down to rest. Quina began healing everyone with his White Wind. Everyone's mood was lightening, except one. Dagger walked to the edge of the platform as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Dagger?" Zidane asked, walking up behind her. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?" she blurted out, her voice cracking. "How can you ask that? Did you forget already!" She turned to the others and chastised them as well. "How can you all just relax like that? Trevor's dead and none of you care!"

Dagger started to break down, falling to her knees just as Zidane wrapped his arms around to comfort her. The others stopped their celebrating and one by one dropped their head in shame or embarrassment. They started to gather at the edge of the platform. Eiko, Vivi and Freya sat to join Dagger and Zidane. They rest stood and looked deep into the abyss.

"You know," Zidane began. "I remember how we first met Trevor."

Everyone listened to Zidane and the crowd rested, focusing on Zidane's story. Some of them still had hope for Trevor. After all, they only saw him fall. That alone didn't mean he was dead. After so many close encounters, survival was entirely possible.

"My brothers in Tantalus and I were trying to kidnap Dagger and take her to Lindblum," Zidane said. "The Regent had asked us to since he suspected Brahne was up to something. Well, I don't know how he did it, but during the play we put on as a front, Trevor found a way to sneak onto the boat. He ended up pole-vaulting into Steiner's chest."

There was a round of chuckles as Steiner turned beet red. The knight just folded his arms and grunted. "I was distracted fighting you, and he just came out of nowhere!" Steiner defended.

"And then there was how he helped us in Evil Forest," Vivi said. "I remember, he didn't have a sword that time, right?"

"No, I had to carve him a new weapon out of a dead pine tree," Steiner recounted. "It was a lousy weapon, and I believe he lodged it inside one of the plant monsters. It was still clever improvisation though."

"And I don't think we could have gotten out of the Ice Cavern without him," Zidane said. "It was just the two of us against the first Black Waltz back then."

"And everything he did in Dali," Dagger reminded. "And Lindblum. And in the Festival of the Hunt. Trevor always seemed to know more than he let on." He even knew not to eat the food Dagger had seasoned with sleeping weed. At least, not at first.

"Yes, I've noticed the same," Steiner said. "He was very wily. It was almost like he could read minds or predict the future."

"Predict the future?" Zidane asked. "Come on guys. Trevor's smart, but I think you might be giving him a little too much credit."

"What about his plan for Cleyra?" Freya pointed out. "He was able to predict Alexandria's attack pattern and counter them at every step. We barely lost anyone because of his battle plan."

"And he know where to go on new continent!" Quina added. "We find city after one day!"

"Well, he's smart, that much we know is true," Zidane admitted. "We'll just have to find out when he gets back up here."

"Zidane," Dagger asked solemnly. "You told me he was dead. What makes you think he's still alive?"

"I…uh, I was hasty before," Zidane said, as if he were distracted. "We still had that dragon to deal with and I wasn't thinking clearly."

"You really think he's alive?" Amarant asked.

"I think there's a chance."

"Guys!" Eiko shouted from her seat at the edge of the platform. "It's the Phoenix! She says she found Trevor!"

"Really?" Vivi asked. "How do you know?"

Eiko pointed to her small horn. "Duh."

"How far down is he?" Dagger asked. "Is he alright?"

"He need white magic?" Quina asked.

"Can he still fight?" Steiner asked.

"Not all at once!" Eiko said. "I can't concentrate. Um… hold on…"

Everyone held their silence as Eiko shut her eyes and stood petrified. A few of the party even held their breath, trying to distract her a little as possible as they waited impatiently for any kind of news, good or bad. After a moment, Eiko gasped and her eyes shot open. Her knees shook as a fire seemed to rise from the abyss. Light grew from under the platform like a sunrise.

"Well, what is it?" Zidane asked. "How is he?"

"The…Phoenix," Eiko began nervously. "She says… it's… bad…"

"How bad?" Zidane pressed. "Eiko, how bad is it?"

Eiko gulped. "She says we might not want to see him…"

The flapping of wings came over the platform as the fiery bird finally came back into view. Her blinding light overtook them for a moment, but even as the heat bore down on all of them, they still fought to see through to what she was carrying in her talons. Zidane fought through the heat and light and stood under the flapping wings until he could place a hand on the crumpled body of his friend.

"Trevor?" he asked.

The body in the Phoenix's talons shifted, and Trevor's cold dead expression gazed up with only one remaining eye. The left side of Trevor's head had been bashed in. An entire section of skull was just gone, leaving most of Trevor's brain exposed, even after some had been mashed out by his impact. Several of his bones were broken and his limbs were twisted, but Zidane just couldn't take his eyes off the horror before him.

"Zidane?" Dagger said, concerned. "Is he…?"

"…He's dead," Zidane said after a very uncomfortable moment. He took a handkerchief out of his pocket and spread it over Trevor's head so the others wouldn't have to see the graphic mess that Trevor had become. He held his arms underneath the larger man, but found the strength to hold his friend as the Phoenix released its grip. Zidane carefully carried Trevor over to the others and set him down beside a fallen pillar.

"No, he's…" Dagger protested. "This isn't right! He—"

"Your highness," Steiner said sympathetically, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Show strength."

"But Steiner," she said. "Trevor's—"

"I know," he said, taking a sharp breath in to hold back a tear. "It hurts me too."

Vivi knelt down by Trevor's body, grabbing his friend's arm and wondering why it felt so cold. "Trevor's… he's actually…" Picking up the arm and watching it drop lifelessly was perhaps the scariest thing Vivi had ever seen in his life. He gripped the sides of his head, burying his face in his hat and began crying like a child.

Quina stood by Trevor's feet, looking up as the blood started to soak into the handkerchief. He thought of meals past shared and the food they would never have together. Trevor was the first out of this group of heroes that he had met. Quina was odd, but he knew that the others looked at him funny. Trevor was the only one that seemed to understand though, and bridged that distance. He really was a good person.

"Thank you for the food," Quina said silently, nodding respectfully to Trevor's fallen body.

Freya and Amarant were less affected by the loss, but they were still melancholy. Freya shook her head and couldn't help but think of the days before her suspicion and of the recent fight with Maliris. She wasn't sure if she was right about Trevor or not, but she regretted her mistreatment of him all the same.

"He did a lot of good," Freya admitted. "He saved a lot of Burmecians, as well as the king. I never thanked him for that."

Amarant nodded. "I shared a beer with him once."

"You shared a beer with someone?"

"It was after Alexandria was destroyed," Amarant began. "I was in a bad mood. So was he. He bumped into me out in the streets and we started to fight. It was intense! The guards kept yelling for us to stop, but by the end of it, I was having too much fun." Amarant showed a rare grin at the memory. "I was impressed with him and he worked his problems out through his swords, so we got a beer together. Didn't talk much, but we didn't have to."

Freya smiled faintly. "That sounds lovely."

As the dour mood resounded amongst the remaining heroes, they each took their turns saying goodbye to Trevor. Some cried, others stood by in silence. Dagger was between the two as tears streamed down her cheek. Her thoughts raced, wondering how this could be possible. After all the trouble they had been through, she had never seriously considered death among her friends. It seemed so obvious now that of course they could die. She couldn't stand being so naïve sometimes. She just shook her head and messily brushed the tears from her cheek.

Suddenly, her head perked up. "Wait a minute…" she realized. A small smile started to spread on her face. "Wait a minute!"

"Your highness?" Steiner asked in confusion for the group.

"We can save him!" Dagger shouted excitedly. "Trevor doesn't have to stay dead!"

The mood lifted for a moment as everyone else questioned Dagger's crazed idea. "You serious?" Zidane asked. "What are you talking about?"

"The Phoenix!" Dagger said. "I've read that the Phoenix is capable of bringing people back to life! It's the power of rebirth! All we need to do is get her to use it on Trevor!"

The idea was perfect. Surely an Eidolon had magic that powerful, and Trevor hadn't been dead that long. Legends told of Phoenix Downs, which could bring fallen warriors back to life on the battlefield. One by one, the party smiled, realizing their sudden good fortune.

"Eiko!" Dagger called out happily. "Can you get the Phoenix to—"

"Don't you think I already tried that?" the little girl interrupted. Just as suddenly as the good mood arrived, it left, leaving everyone confused and hurt. "As soon as I saw Trevor's body, I asked the Phoenix to bring him back. She says it's impossible! His body's been too damaged. Even if she could bring him back, his body would be too crippled to really use!"

Eiko pointed at the bent arms, the backwards-pivoting leg, and the missing part of his head through the blood-soaked handkerchief. White magic could only do so much, but repairing this much damage _and _bringing someone back from the dead would require more magic than they had.

"So it's… impossible?" Dagger asked quietly.

"I'm sorry," Eiko said, starting to cry. "I wish I could do more…"

"No, you did great," Zidane said, placing a hand on both girls' shoulders. "But guys, I think we should give Trevor a proper funeral."

"How?" Freya asked. "There's no dirt here. We can't bury him in rock."

"There's always cremation," Steiner pointed out. "Some of the mightiest warrior's ashes are often spread into the winds. I think Trevor has more than earned that title."

One by one, everyone agreed. It was the best course of action. They all took turns giving their final goodbyes and saying a few words on Trevor's behalf, recalling stories and adventures. Some stories made others laugh while it only made some of them cry harder, but Zidane came in with the final words, trying to calm the dire air.

"…But perhaps what I'll remember most of all," Zidane said at the end of his eulogy, "is that Trevor died saving my life. If he hadn't jumped in when he did, that would be me on the ground and not him. He gave his life to protect someone else, and I can't think of anything better to describe him. He was selfless to a fault, sacrificial, and always willing to go out of his way to help a friend however he could. Even when he was suffering from that experiment, he kept his pain hidden just to push our collective goal forward. To him, that's all that ever mattered…"

Everyone bowed their heads in silence, except Steiner, who unsheathed his blade and held it high to mark his respect. Zidane stepped away from the front to rejoin the group.

"Eiko," he said. "When you're ready."

"…Okay," she said hesitantly. Even though they all agreed this was the best course of action, Eiko still wasn't sure if she wanted to go through with it. She gulped, trying to hide her nerves for the moment and telepathically talked to the Phoenix, who was still among them. After a moment, they fiery bird seemed to nod and flapped its wings, spreading the heat. A small cone of fire erupted in and around Trevor's body, catching him on fire and hiding him behind a wall of swirling reds and oranges. The flames cooked the body for only a few short seconds, but the process seemed to go on for minutes. Then, as it ended, the flames lifted and only a scorch mark remained under a pile of rising ashes. Zidane knelt down, still caught up in the moment and unsure if these ashes had truly once been his friend. However, a wind caught them and Trevor's remains began to flake away, fading into the dark reaches of Memoria.

No one moved or said anything as the ash pile washed away. It took several minutes until they couldn't see anything left as the pile flew off in short bursts. After Trevor was gone, Zidane took a few steps towards the stairs at the end of the platform, aimed into the swirling clouds in the sky.

"C'mon guys," he said somberly. "Kuja's not gonna wait forever."


	5. Prayer for the Fallen

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's notes: I have one of the coolest roommates around! Why's that you ask? Because he made a trailer for Micro God! XD It's a minute long, but he made it using iMovie and good god is it great! If you didn't want to buy a copy of Micro God before, this will settle it! A link is in my profile! XD Also, I could use help getting the word out. If you have a facebook account, please post a link, or if you have a youtube account, feel free to mirror the trailer (just make sure to include the appropriate links, amazon and all :P). Thanks in advance to anyone who does so. ^^

And yes, I'm going to let you know now, there is another cliffhanger at the end of the chapter. XD Sue me, I'm evil. :P

Chapter 5- Prayer for the Fallen

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Memoria only continued to get stranger and stranger. After ascending above the clouds, the heroes were greeted with a new city. Narrow streets were paved through ruined buildings. Short domes covered tall towers. Somewhere, they could hear a fire burning, but there was no sign of it. Instead, there were only damp and mildewed walls as bacteria and mold grew in the cracks of the buildings.

"This city looks like it has been attacked," Steiner said. "Perhaps not recently, but this could be a once great city!"

"It looks like Lindblum," Vivi pointed out. "I mean, after the eidolon with the big mouth attacked it."

Dagger tried to hide her shame at the comment. It was her eidolon which destroyed Lindblum. Logic told her that it wasn't her fault and there was nothing she could do, but she couldn't help a pang of guilt as they walked through the streets.

"I think these are the ruins of Rosalyn," she said.

"Rosalyn?" Freya asked. "I've never heard of such a place."

"Me neither!" Quina quickly added.

"It's an ancient city," Dagger said. "And you're right Vivi. Rosalyn was actually a city along the coast on the southwestern side of the Mist continent. It was said to be a beautiful coastal city. The only one of its kind."

"Wait, it was right along the sea?" Eiko asked. "What about the mist? Why would you build a city down in the middle of it?"

"It was because of the sea that they could," Dagger continued. "The sea brought in strong winds and pushed the mist back, which allowed the city to thrive as an excellent fishing port. Just like Burmecia is called the City of Eternal Rain, Rosalyn was the City of Undying Wind. However, that sea wind proved to be their downfall. We don't know all the details, but it seems the sea brought a terrible storm one morning. Much worse than any other storm it brought before. The city wasn't prepared for it and the waves crashed down, destroying the walls and forcing the citizens out. After that, the leaders gathered the refugees and fled to higher ground. That's when Lindblum was born."

"No wonder they look the same," Vivi said.

"Lindblum, really?" Eiko asked excitedly. "Dagger, how do you know these things?"

"Doctor Tot taught me. I used to spend hours studying in the library. It was very interesting."

The party continued to walk and talk, admiring the ruins of the ancient city. The buildings and designs became fancier and more grand the higher they went up, just like Lindblum. However, through it all, Zidane kept a steady pace at the front of the pack, hardly saying a word if he could help it. After several minutes of the party chatting and trying to alleviate the stress, Dagger ran forward to comfort their unspoken leader.

"Zidane?" Dagger asked. "Are you alright?"

"I just…" he started slowly. "I feel so empty right now… It feels like it was my fault and—"

"Zidane, we all miss him! We're all hurt, but it's like you said, we have a mission! We're trying to distract ourselves so the pain doesn't cripple us. And Trevor would want us to finish the job rather than give up and mourn his death!"

Zidane didn't so much as turn to look at her. He kept his eyes down, as if he only concentrated on the ground in front of himself. "I just keep replaying his fall in my head," he said after a moment. "Maybe if I had done something differently, or dodged when the dragon used that float spell on me—"

"Zidane, stop!" Dagger said softly but firmly, so as not to alert the others. "You know it's not your fault! Don't blame yourself!"

"I know, and I keep telling myself that," the thief sighed. "But it's just so hard to keep going. The others are doing better and I don't want to ruin that for them. You should just go back with them and try to relax yourself. I'll be fine."

Suddenly, in a surprising show of defiance, Dagger grabbed Zidane's hand and stood before him, forcing him to look her deep in the eyes. "I'm not leaving you," she said. "Not ever. You're important to me Zidane. I worry about you. I… I care… about… you…"

Dagger blushed as bright as a tomato, but didn't dare shy away from Zidane's gaze. He only looked back, blushing as well and gripped her hand tighter.

"Dagger…"

"Zidane…"

A rough cough from the rusted knight broke their moment as both thief and queen broke contact, jumping to opposite sides of the street. In Dagger's attempt to comfort Zidane, she had forgotten that they were at the front of the group.

"Your highness?" Steiner addressed calmly.

"You're blocking the way," Amarant grunted as the entire party stopped moving.

Zidane tried to hide his blush, but that only made him blush more. Dagger could only turn away and bury her face in her hands. Eiko, Freya and Quina had a short laugh at their expense before the others started to chuckle along with them.

"Aw, shut up, all of you," Zidane said, spinning back to face the trail. "Let's keep going. It can't be much further."

XXXXXXXX

Several more hours went by, but they could have been only minutes in this strange land. Memories came and went. Some made sense, but others were strange. One odd one came as the path twisted and turned in a forest, only to open to a fortress whose entrance was obscured by a thin waterfall. A small stone bridge led them inside, but a stone wall spread itself tall and wide, taking up most of what they could see. The wall was supported with large pillars carved to look like fierce wyrms, each with its own distinct features.

"This building is… ancient," Steiner said, astonished at the worn stone walls.

"Makes sense," Zidane said. "The further we go, the farther back in time we end up."

"What'll we see in the end?" Vivi asked.

"Nothingness?" Freya guessed. "The formation of the planet? Maybe the gods?"

"My guess is we find Kuja," Amarant said. The lumbering bandit didn't even slow down to admire the wall and was the first one through the waterfall.

"You gotta admit," Zidane said. "He's certainly focused."

The rest of the party followed suit, walking through the waterfall right behind Amarant.

Inside, they found an underwater forest of coral and rocks. Moss and barnacles were encrusted on outcropping boulders. The only path they could walk was surrounded by pointed coral formations and a cliff jutting out of the water far above them. The path led to a thin staircase, but there was too much light on the surface of the water to see what the stairs breached into. "This is so weird," Eiko said as a fish passed her by. "How can we breath? We're underwater!"

"Aya! I feel like fish!" Quina said, although the others wondered if he meant he felt like a fish or if he wanted to eat one. The later was likely.

"It's just a memory," Dagger explained. "And it's not ours. It's not real to us, so I guess we're not bound by normal rules."

"That's an understatement," Freya said. "So far we've traversed time, seen ancient lands build themselves up and get destroyed seconds later, and can I remind you of that section of walkway where we walked straight up a wall?"

"Yeah, that was weird," Zidane said, shuttering at the thought. Before the forest, their only path led them vertically into a castle resting on its side. It had taken them five minutes before anyone dared test gravity and risk falling off the path into the darkness below. "Just keep moving."

They followed the staircase out of the water and onto a large platform resting just on the surface of the water. It was only because of the twisted reality of this place that they couldn't see the platform from within the water. They looked around as they stepped up to the platform. They were enclosed in a large, ruined tower. Several of the walls had collapsed, letting sunlight bleed in from outside, and the windows were caged off with thick, rusted metal. A staircase showed them the way out of the tower through a window at the top.

"Wow, look at this place!" Eiko said, running along the platform. The knelt down and splashed her hand in the water.

"Eiko, be careful," Dagger warned. "We don't know what will happen if you fall in there."

Disappointed that her fun was interrupted, Eiko pouted and stuck her lips out. "Fine," she sulked and rejoined the group.

All eight of them started up again, walking across the large platform. They all craned their heads to see the bizarre sights, but about halfway through, Freya dropped to one knee and placed her hand on her head.

"Freya!" Zidane said, rushing to her side. "Are you alright? Did you trip?"

"No, I…" said began as Steiner helped her to her feet. "I just got a strange sense that I've been here before…"

"You what?" Zidane asked. "Freya, that's impossible. This place is an ancient memory and look at how it's coming apart."

"We're probably thousands of years in the past, if not more," Dagger added. "Maybe it just reminds you of something."

"No, it's not that," Freya said. She squinted at the light coming from a window at floor level. Curiously, she walked to it and looked beyond the blinding water filling the window and gasped. "There's no land out there! I remember now! Gaia used to be one large ocean!"

"You what?" Zidane blurted out. The others muttered in confusion. "Freya how can you remember this? You were never here!"

"Wait, Zidane…" Dagger said. "I think she's right. For some reason, I can remember it too…"

"So can I!" Vivi said. "There isn't any land anywhere!"

One by one, the rest of them regained a lost memory. Gaia, in its infancy as a planet, was once covered in only water. Through millions of years, life evolved under the ocean, until underwater volcanoes expanded and erupted, creating land. Some creatures evolved further, growing legs, arms and lungs and started living upon the newly created land. The memory was fresh in their mind, as if it had all happened yesterday.

"What's going on?" Zidane asked. "Why can we all remember this now?"

"Could Kuja be doing this somehow?" Steiner asked.

"I don't think so. I think he would try to blow us up or perform in front of us. He wouldn't bother trying to teach us."

"Then what is this?" Eiko asked. "What's doing this to us?"

"IT IS THE POWER OF THE CRYSTAL!"

The party rushed back together just as something massive jumped out of the water. The dark shape crashed onto the other side of the platform. It looked like a huge fish at first, with two fat arms, four fatter legs and two long, stringy tentacles coming out at his shoulders. Wide fins spread out from his head and the monster wore a golden chestplate with a ruby the size of a fist

"Do you fools not even know what you're fighting?" the monster shouted. "I am the Water Chaos Guardian, Kraken! Your presence is forbidden!"

"Wait, you said the crystal!" Zidane shouted. "What did you mean? Is it giving us these memories?"

"The crystal contains the memories of the entire planet!" Kraken explained. "Time, continents, cities, and individual people contribute to this fortress you call Memoria! And it has also birthed my siblings and I! It is a force far stronger than you would ever hope to comprehend!"

"What's it doing to us?" Zidane demanded. "How is it doing this?"

"As you step closer, the memories bond to you," Kraken explained. "The memories of the past become your memories. These sensations will increase the closer you come to it." Kraken leaned over, giving a presence of complete control. "But you will not make it that far. Small mistakes by my siblings allowed you to vanquish them. You will not be so fortunate with me!"

"I like this guy," Amarant laughed, slipping his gauntlets on. "I'm gonna have fun kicking his ass!"

"It is worthless to try," Kraken challenged.

"Yeah, right," Amarant grunted. He was the first to charge.

"Amarant, wait!" Zidane called out.

But the green-skinned bandit wouldn't listen. He roared as he ran, pulling his arms back to sink his claws in deep.

Kraken didn't move an inch at first at the oncoming attack. "Foolish…"

As Amarant came close, one of Kraken's legs swept out faster than the bandit could see. The attack came from behind, catching Amarant off guard. Amarant was thrown off the platform and into the water as a loud crack escaped his ribs. He landed in a messy splash and quickly sank.

"Amarant!" Zidane called out.

"I've got him!" Freya said, jumping into the water after her hotheaded comrade.

"Dammit…" Zidane muttered. He expected some resistance, but he didn't think he wouldn't be able to see the attacks. These monsters were getting stronger exponentially. At this rate, they would run into a monster so strong that they didn't stand a chance against it, and that was assuming that it wasn't too late already.

"Zidane!" Dagger cried out. "This is just like the monster Eiko and I fought! We can beat it if we use fire!"

"Fire?" Zidane asked.

"Yes. I summoned Ifrit and she summoned the Phoenix!"

"I'm already on it!" Eiko said, putting her flute to her lips and pulling out a phoenix pinion.

"Good," Zidane said, taking charge like a battlefield general. "Dagger you do the same. Steiner, keep them safe. Vivi, run out to the right and hit that thing with the biggest fireball you can! Quina, stand back and be ready to counter anything it throws at us!"

"Got it!"

"Of course!"

"Alrighty!"

"Okie dokie!"

Zidane pulled out his daggers and went on the defensive as well. Once Freya pulled Amarant out of the water they could flank from all three sides. Everything was falling into place. This wouldn't be the same scattered operation that the fight with Tiamat had become. They were going to stick together and work as a team. He wasn't going to let anyone else die.

Although Kraken was too large to move quickly, he could still reach the party. He looked at the summoners with bored contempt, seeing that they were something of a threat to him. He raised a tentacle, aiming it at Quina. Just as the summoners were finishing up with their spells, Quina was quickly enveloped by a ball of water.

"Quina!" Zidane shouted at the unexpected development. The poor Qu could only struggle helplessly and flap his arms inside the water. Try as he might, there was no way to escape.

"And now for you," Kraken said ominously, looking at Dagger and Eiko. With a wave of his tentacle, Quina, still trapped inside the water, was hurled forward, crashing into the both of them and interrupting their spellcasting. The girls fell forward as Quina landed on top of them.

"Guys!" Zidane shouted. He and Steiner rushed to get Quina off of the two girls before his large frame crushed them.

Kraken just laughed at their failed assault. "Fools. Turn back now and I may spare your lives."

Zidane glanced up, trying to hold the line and reset their strategy, but it was Vivi who answered him.

"Firaga!"

A huge plume of fire erupted underneath Kraken, starting at the legs and bursting forth, consuming everything and cooking the monster's sensitive skin. Kraken roared as the skin on his legs bubbled and turned black. He had to use a Water spell to cure the flames and sooth his damaged skin.

"My offer is retracted," Kraken growled angrily. "You are all going to die in here!"

"You first!"

Kraken looked to his side and saw Amarant, soaking wet, challenging him again. Freya stood, also drenched, at his side. The two warriors stood to the monster's right side. With Vivi to the left and the rest in front of Kraken, he was as surrounded as he could be on the small platform.

Kraken just watched as the heroes got into position. In truth, there was very little they could do to actually threaten him, but they would discover that soon enough. All he did was prepare his attacks, one right after the other.

"His legs are hurt," Amarant pointed out to Freya. "He won't be able to sneak in a hit like he did last time. I'll go low and you go high."

"Just be careful," Freya warned. "He may still have an arsenal of tricks that we don't know about yet."

"He got one lucky hit in. It won't happen again."

As Amarant rushed in, Vivi prepared another spell. Kraken saw both of them in action and moved his uppermost tentacles, aiming it at both of them. This first attack hit Amarant, shooting out a glob of ink at the bandit. The surprise attack caught the man off guard and sent him sprawling back to the middle of the platform, covered in a thick black substance.

Vivi got the same treatment as another glob of ink hit him square in the chest, practically gluing him to the floor. In the confusion, Freya tried to react and attack Kraken's head, but she fell short as a tentacle swung out and gave her a good smack. She was sent flying through the air, colliding with the wall feet first. Instinct kicked in and she was able to kick herself away, landing back onto the platform. She fell to one knee though, holding her side where the tentacle had hit her.

"Vivi!" Zidane shouted. "Quina, go help him! Amarant, how are ya doing?"

"I'm gonna kill this bastard!" Amarant said as he picked himself up.

"Freya?"

The dragon knight would not fall so easily and picked herself up, twirling her polearm over her head, ready for more combat. "I'm fine!" she shouted back.

"Girls," Zidane said, turning to the summoners. "Forget summoning for now. We're going to need white magic if this keeps up."

"Alright," Dagger said. She held her rod before her and concentrated.

"What if we just split up?" Eiko said. "Dagger, you heal and I'll summon?"

"I can't heal them alone!" Dagger had to remind her. "Eiko, I need your help!"

The young girl just sighed angrily and gave in without a fight. She started casting her healing spells just as Dagger finished one for Amarant.

Kraken watched over the chaotic battlefield with satisfaction. They were starting to scatter, he could see. The green one was angry and impossible to control. Toying with him might damage the morale of the rest of the group. As long as he kept an eye on the mages and the dragon knight, he would be fine.

At just that moment, Kraken looked over at Vivi and saw him channeling magic into his staff. The young mage had power, and lots of it. Kraken had discovered that the hard way. He couldn't let the little mage get another spell off. Kraken quickly aimed another tentacle at Vivi and released another shot of ink.

The ink flew through the air and hit its target true. Vivi was covered in ink again, but with Quina at his side, he wasn't knocked over. The steady Qu kept Vivi standing and glared angrily up at the monster.

"He attack a child!" Quina said angrily. "He horrible person!"

"Master Vivi!" Steiner shouted, not leaving his spot in front of the princess. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Vivi said, wiping the ink from his face and spitting some into the water. His clothes were soaked deep with so much ink that he felt like he had gained fifty pounds.

"Vivi, try it again!" Zidane shouted.

"But it didn't work!" the young mage pointed out.

"Try it again," Zidane repeated. "Steiner will help you!"

There was a short flash of insight as Vivi understood what he meant. Kraken watched cautiously as the party gathered around him, too dispersed to attack all at once. He would have to pick his targets carefully, but with Vivi channeling another spell, his choice was obvious. Kraken aimed another ink glob at Vivi and shot it, but it was for naught.

As the ink soared through the air, Quina readied his counter. "Aqua Breath!" he cried out. Suddenly, the glob of ink was met with a wave of water, knocking it out of the air and diluting it. Kraken stared in shock for a moment as he prepared another attack, but he could already see he was too late. Vivi got the spell off, but it didn't open a volcanic eruption underneath the fish monster. And for some reason, the knight was charging forth, his blade alight…

Kraken realized too late what was happening. Another glob of ink shot forth without aim, missing Steiner badly. Kraken tried to swing a tentacle to block him, but Amarant came from the side, grappling with the tentacle and driving his clawed hand into it. Kraken reeled back before the hit, but being so large, couldn't move easily. He let out a scream as Steiner's sword struck home in the monster's stomach.

"Firaga Sword!" Steiner said before the explosion cut him off. The magic channeled itself through the sword and into the deep wound. The Firaga burned Kraken's innards, cooking his organs as it belched smoke. Kraken tried to push Steiner away with a limp leg, but it was too weak and couldn't hop to prevail.

The attack wasn't over.

Kraken looked over the battlefield just in time to see Freya and Zidane running in parallel. Freya launched herself at the monster's hulking shoulders. Kraken was in so much pain that there was nothing he could do to prevent her approach. The dragon knight landed on his shoulder, taking a quick swing at the ink-spewing tentacle, lopping it clean off.

Zidane made a similar attack charge. He leapt up onto Steiner's back, just as planned, and pulled himself up to Kraken's shoulder as well. He took a swing like Freya's, severing the second tentacle and dropping it to the ground. He took a jump off, rolling as he landed.

"Back up! Get away!" he ordered as all four attackers fell back. "Vivi!"

"Got it!" the young mage called out. He already had another spell charged and ready to go. As soon as the melee fighters were far enough away, a Firaga erupted underneath Kraken, overtaking him in fire. Kraken yelled in pain as the smell of roasted fish overtook the party. Quina drooled happily but the result was the same. Kraken burned and his skin flecked off.

"That's it!" Zidane encouraged. "Don't let up! Make sure we finish it here!"

"No!" Kraken yelled over the sound of flames. "NOOOO!"

Kraken raised his arms to his sides, summoning a wave to form in the water behind himself. It splashed down, washing every inch of his body and flowing out onto the platform. It gushed under the heroes' feet, washing away their hopes as well. Kraken's body was badly damaged, but there was a slight glow to him. Almost as if he—

"No, stop him!" Zidane yelled. Vivi and Quina readied their spells. Amarant and Steiner rushed forward. Freya leapt into the air and Dagger and Eiko began summoning their Eidolons. However, a gust of wind knocked them all away. Kraken's body began to heal as the crusty skin broke off, revealing fresh, younger skin underneath. The cut on his stomach stitched itself together and the severed tentacles regenerated. All the damage that had taken them minutes to inflict was undone in seconds.

"Your efforts are worthless," Kraken taunted. "Now, know your place!"

With a wave of his arms, twin Fire spells blew up into the field. Vivi and Amarant, who were still covered with ink, ignited and were soon burning alive. The flames scorched their skin, causing Amarant to roar in frustration and pain, while Vivi screamed in terror and panic.

"Guys!" Zidane cried out. He ran to Vivi's side and tried to beat the flames out with his bare hands, but against the fuel coating Vivi's body, he didn't stand much chance. Amarant was having just as much trouble. He laid on his stomach, trying to smother the fire in the traces of water still left on the platform, but it didn't do him any good.

"Zidane, move!" Quina said. He pushed the thief away and reared his head back. "Aqua Breath!"

The splash of water was able to dilute the ink enough, washing it from the young mage's body, but Vivi was still very badly burned. His skin bled as his small yellow eyes looked up to Zidane for help. The pain was soon overwhelming, but Vivi was still able to cast one small magic spell.

"Blizz…ard…" he said, weakly aiming the spell at Amarant.

The bandit stepped into the spell and even though it hurt, it snuffed the flames. Finally relived but still in pain as his skin blistered, Amarant laid back on the damp platform, trying to catch his breath. Every twitch and every breath sent a jolt of agony through his entire body. He could barely move between the burned skin and the frostbite.

"Two are finished," Kraken gloated. "The rest of you will be much easier."

The beast raised his arms above his head, summoning the globes of water again. They quickly surrounded Zidane and Quina, trapping them inside and cutting off their air. Quina tried swimming through the attack as Zidane struggled to fill his lungs. They didn't have long to struggle though as their orbs soon lifted off the ground and crashed into the group of others. Freya tried to jump away and escape the damage, but a new globe of water soon trapped her in midair, throwing her back down into the crowd.

"All of you will drown," Kraken said fatally. "Waterga!"

Another wave of Kraken's arms brought a geyser of water forth. It shot up in the middle of the group and rained down, forming a tight, impenetrable bubble. More and more water gathered as the heroes tried in vain to escape, splashing about in the growing pool. Soon enough, the water encapsulated everyone but Vivi and Amarant, who were too burned to help them, or even move. They were forced to watch helplessly as everyone else began to drown.

"A fitting end!" Kraken laughed. "To drown in a room made of memories of a time when the planet was only one ocean!"

Vivi, who was burned worse than Amarant, did his best to crane his head around. He could barely watch as they all struggled, swimming around in the giant globe of water. Eiko was already still and Steiner was stuck on the bottom thanks to his heavy armor. Vivi looked around and saw Amarant, screaming through the pain as he pulled himself towards Kraken on one arm, moving centimeters at a time.

Vivi looked up and saw Kraken laughing, maintaining the Waterga spell and keeping complete control of the fight. With everyone else drowning, Vivi was the only one with the range to stop him. He raised a hand to charge a spell, but he was so weak… so badly hurt. He cried out as he raised his staff and charged a magic spell. If he could get the spell off in time… if he could interrupt Kraken, maybe he could save everyone. But as he gathered the magic, Vivi knew he was channeling too slowly. It wasn't enough power. He wasn't going to make it…

Just then, there was movement in the shadows. Something ran in the light of the doorway behind Kraken, where the path led to Kuja. Vivi's eyes started to blur as a tall figure stood at the top of the staircase, holding a sword in each hands. Kraken was completely oblivious to the newcomer and never saw him leap down until it was too late.

Vivi could only watched in stunned horror as he saw the savior drop. "Trevor?"

The last second hero jumped with a battle roar, aiming for the back of Kraken's head. Each blade struck deep as the newcomer cut into Kraken's soft skin. The blades sliced through the restored tentacles and into the ink sacs inside Kraken's shoulders. Thick black ink sprayed everywhere, gushing out like an oil well. The ink covered everything on the platform around the monster, coating Kraken and the newcomer alike.

Vivi watched in awe as the newcomer dashed about, slicing Kraken open and severing his arms and legs. He moved like a dancer, without a single wasted motion and every attack causing incredible damage. Kraken couldn't keep track of him, and in the confusion, dropped the Waterga bubble. The rest of the group fell coughing and gasping for air. They too could only watch as the mysterious fighter finished his circle around Kraken, letting the ink drip into the fresh wounds.

"Use Fire, now!" the newcomer yelled. "Burn this bastard!"

The newcomer, still covered in ink, leapt backwards into the water and out of harm's way. Vivi had charged just enough magic for a simple Fire, and covered in ink as Kraken was, that was all he would need. Vivi used the last of his strength to deliver the spell. A small flame hit Kraken on the chest, and the flames only grew from there.

Fire spread through ink, using it as an accelerant. Soon, Kraken's entire body was covered in flames as the fire traveled inside the open wounds. Stumped legs were sealed by fire as his blood charred. Fire spread inside Kraken's stomach, adding to the damage already done before. The anguish was too much for Kraken to handle as he began to violently shake, unable to summon more water thanks to his severed arms.

Soon, as the smell of his burnt body filled the air, Kraken's screams began to dull, lowering in volume and intensity. As the fires burned away at his throat, he could only gasp as air escaped his lips. The ink burned away, used up by the flames, revealing a fully-immolated monster. Kraken's body was no more than a burned, blackened mass of oozing meat. The others weren't sure when exactly he had died, but the flames consumed all of him.

"How the hell…" Zidane was the first to speak. "That was…"

"Vivi!" Dagger called out. She readied a Cura as she ran to his side, casting it on him as she kneeled down. "Are you alright?" she asked, holding him in her arms.

Vivi stirred, barely moving at first. It had hurt so much before that he wasn't immediately ready to try again. However, after a moment, he pushed himself up. "Yeah, I think so," he said. The burns were gone from his body, but he felt like he would never get used to getting injured so badly, even with white mages as his best friends.

Eiko hurried and cured Amarant as well, and the bandit helped himself up. He looked over his shoulder at the obnoxious little girl and grunted.

"Thanks," he said.

"What was that?" Eiko pressed. "Speak up!"

Amarant turned to face his momentary savior, though with a huge frown. "I said thanks!"

"One more time?" Eiko said, holding a hand to her ear with a mocking grin plastered on her face.

Amarant just grumbled. "Stupid brat…"

"That really was miraculous," Freya said as the party regrouped. "I wasn't sure if we were going to make it out of there."

Quina nodded in agreement. "Aya. I try drinking my way out of water. It not work."

"Speaking of miracles, where did that fighter go?" Steiner asked. "I saw him dive into the water. Did he come out?"

"I haven't seen him," Freya admitted. She made her way to the side of the platform. "We should look around."

"Guys, I think that was Trevor!" Vivi said excitedly. "I saw him as he ran in!"

"What?" Dagger asked. "Vivi, you know that's impossible."

"But it really was him!"

"Oh Vivi," Dagger said sadly and brought the young mage in for a tender hug. The trauma of losing his friend was still too hard to bear.

"Either way, that man is still here," Steiner said. "We need to find him."

The search shortly proved unnecessary though as a hand shot out of the water. Everyone watched as one of the last minute heroes pulled himself onto the platform, clad in metallic blue armor. His long, wet hair hung in front of his face, and a pair of short swords was sheathed at his sides, one blue, the other red.

Even behind the long hair, Zidane and company could see the hero grinning like a madman. "Not bad for an entrance, huh?"

Everyone gasped or stared in disbelief as Trevor McEvoy pulled his hair out of his face and smiled back at them.

"Trevor!" Vivi shouted. The young mage ran as fast as his little legs would carry him back to his best friend's side. Vivi wrapped his arms around Trevor's waist, unsure if he was even really seeing this. "I knew it! I knew you weren't dead!"

"Nope," Trevor said. "Actually, I—"

"Trevor!" Dagger shouted next as he jumped at him, hugging him tightly. She had to hold her breath to stop herself from crying into his shoulder.

One by one, everyone circled around Trevor, greeting him in their own way. It all seemed too good to be true. Zidane kept replaying Trevor's funeral in his mind, wondering exactly how Trevor could have come out of that alive. Yet here he stood now, in full armor and with the short swords that Zidane recognized after a moment. They were Crimson and Azure, the same blades that Trevor had gotten from the Black Mages.

"This is quite a turn of events," Steiner said as the morale soared. "But how could you have survived all that? Are you really Trevor?"

"He's right," Freya added. Trevor just frowned in her suspicion, but given the circumstances, it made sense. "You fell to your death. I saw your body, and then we cremated it!"

"You cremated me?" Trevor asked, more surprised by their actions than their accusations. "Gee, thanks guys…"

"How did you survive?" Freya pressed. "We saw you die!"

To answer, Trevor pulled out Crimson and held it high. A large, purple blade sprouted out the top of it in a Demon Saber. After holding it long enough to prove his point, Trevor pulled the blade back and sheathed his short sword. "Have you ever seen anyone else use this kind of magic? Is that proof enough that I'm me?"

Steiner smiled proudly. "Good enough for me!"

"But I don't get it!" Zidane shouted, coming down the middle of the group to confront Trevor face to face. "Trevor, I saw you… I saw you fall… I held your dead body in my arms. How are you still alive? Are you just a memory now?"

There was a gentle stirring coming from behind them. Trevor turned and saw Kraken shifting, his burned skin shedding and flaking apart. The beast growled and water started to pool at the heroes' feet as another Waterga formed. The geyser splashed up and it began to rain down, but that was as far as it got. There was a thunderous _Whoosh!_, like the air itself was being torn apart. A small arc of energy sliced Kraken's neck open, and slowly, Kraken's head slid off and hit the ground. It bounced once as a larger bolt of energy traversed the ground like a shark fin and cut the monster's body in half. Blood shot out like the ink had before and drained into the water, tinting it red.

"Trevor?" Zidane said. "That looked just like your magic. Did you do that?"

"No actually," Trevor said, looking up at the top of the stairwell where another man was standing. The second man wore armor just like Trevor's, had a long, thin katana in each hand, and had a face just like Trevor's. The length of their hair was what set them apart. The second man leapt down from the steps, landing between the two halves of Kraken's corpse.

"That was reckless," he scolded. "You should have finished him off instead of trying to make a dramatic entrance."

"Right, right," Trevor said, walking over to stand by his double. "But that's why I keep you around."

Trevor noticed after a moment that everyone was gawking at the two of them, staring in disbelief, or in Freya's case, caution. Trevor took action though to calm everyone before things got out of hand.

"Sorry about that guys. I forgot," he said. "Let me introduce you. This is my friend, Lieutenant Kaiten Saeis."

Kaiten simply nodded. "Nice to finally meet you."


	6. The Heroes Return

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author notes: I feel I have to apologize for last month's chapter. Not for the cliffhanger since, let's face it, I'm evil. However, it was not my best work. Sure, it carried the plot and excited most of the reviewers, and who really saw Kaiten getting his own body? However, there were flaws, mistakes, and I came dangerously close to a plot hole or two. I couldn't put my all into this latest chapter because of some familial problems, and I didn't realize how badly I had been distracted until after the chapter had been published.

My little brother just graduated a very difficult college in a difficult field (I'm very proud of him). However, some of you might remember a long while back when I made a point to mention that my evil stepmother threw away several important toys from my childhood. Well, I drove my brother back home (a 9 hour trip, mind you), and we're not in the door for literally 5 seconds before she says this…

"Don't put your things in your old room. We're putting the house on the market and we need your room to stay clean and orderly, and not look like a guy's messy dorm room. You can put your things in the garage."

In less than a minute, the greatest achievement of my brother's life was forgotten in a rage against this disgusting, arrogant bitch. Things only got worse though, as she proceeded to torment him daily, checking every inch of his room and private bathroom to make sure it was literally spotless. She tormented him so much that he was forced to move out of the house and drove twenty hours (over 1000 miles!) to live with our mother instead.

So, understandably, I no longer get to hang out with my little brother over the summer while he looked for a job, as I had hoped to do. I know this isn't an excuse for bad writing though, and as such, I've gone back and rewritten some of Chapter 5 to fill in some of this plot points that people mentioned.

I just needed you guys to know where I was coming from.

Please, enjoy the next chapter. Fair warning, I'm doing that thing again where I pretend I understand philosophy and abstract concepts, so this chapter gets a liiiiiittle trippy. Just giving you guys a head's up. :P

Chapter 6- The Heroes Return.

XXXXXXXX

Water splashed against the raised platform, beating with a lazy effort. The sound was repetitive and constant, almost like a relaxing white noise. The light shone on the surface of the water as a bright sunset reflected just outside the barred windows. The room was a place of peace and serenity now that Kraken had been killed.

And despite all this, everyone else could only stare at Kaiten with confusion and a hint of horror, like they were looking at a ghost.

I took a seat on the stairs. Kaiten, rather than stand alone, joined me, but stayed standing next to the staircase.

"I'm sure you all have a ton of questions," I said.

"More than a few!" Zidane said. "Trevor, what the hell is this? Who is that?"

"He already said my name," Kaiten replied impatiently.

Zidane ignored him. "Have you been hiding him this entire time? Does this have anything to do with that experiment you mentioned?"

"It has everything to do with the experiment," I admitted. "Kaiten has been my 'partner' for a while now. He existed as a soul inside my head ever since we were at Dali. I can vouch for him. He's an even stronger fighter than I am."

"But who can vouch for you?" Freya asked. "You've been lying from the very start! Everything you've said was meant to misdirect us and keep us from learning about this man."

"Freya, listen. I—"

"Shut up you damned rat!"

Everyone turned in surprise as Kaiten blurted out his insult. A short silence overcame everyone else as Kaiten continued to rant.

"Do you even remember why you started mistrusting Trevor? This man did his damnedest to save your city, at great personal risk! I seem to remember him getting a hole blasted in his chest. He single-handedly came up with a plan to save Cleyra that every nearly worked! And in Treno, he—"

"Kaiten, no," I had to stop him. Seki had asked us not to tell Freya about her situation.

"My point is, that yes, he mislead you, but do you even know why he did it?"

Everyone turned as Freya was left speechless. "I… I don't know, but he—"

"He did it so that no one else would worry about him! He did it so that the rest of you would focus on fighting Brahne, and Kuja. Saving the world came before any of his own problems and he sacrificed himself almost at the cost of his sanity and certainly nearly at the cost of his life! And all you can do is say he's a liar. That you can't trust him. Well you know what? Trevor has saved my life plenty of times, and I wouldn't be surprised if he does it again, even if I have my own body now. The hell if you don't trust him. I do! And the two of us are going to keep fighting until we reach Kuja and stop him. You're allowed to tag along with us if you'd like."

A hush fell over the party once again. Even I stared up at Kaiten in surprise. I wasn't used to other people fighting for my sake. I liked it.

"C'mon Trevor, let's go," Kaiten said, starting up the stairs. I spun on my heel and was right behind him. However, we only made it up half a dozen stairs before Zidane stopped us.

"Hold on!" he called out. Kaiten and I stopped to regard him for the moment.

"Trevor, it's not that we don't trust you. I hope you know that," he said. "But you gotta admit, this is a very… bizarre situation. I think we would all feel a little more comfortable if you explained what the hell is going on."

I felt a warm relief in my heart to hear Zidane say that. The others seemed to agree with him. Even Freya held her tongue, still embarrassed at the lashing Kaiten had given her. I walked back down a few steps and sat on a stair again, letting my leg to drape over the side over the water.

"Alright," I said. "I'll tell you everything, but you're not going to believe some of it. The reason I didn't tell you was because I never had proof and never thought you'd believe me. I just have to ask that you have an open mind right now."

I saw Steiner, Dagger and Vivi nod. Eiko looked intrigued and Zidane sighed, but answered for them. "Go ahead," he said. "We'll listen."

So I told them.

I told them everything.

About how I came to Gaia. About how my soul had been planted inside Trevor Delores' body. About how Kaiten had been planted as well in Dali. I even went so far as to explain Final Fantasy IX as a video game, which, understandably, got me a lot of confused looks. The others were confused or even tormented at learning what they were in my world back on Earth, but I had promised to tell them everything. I owed them that much.

"And then there's Kaiten's story," I continued. "He started as a soldier on Terra thousands of years ago as—"

"Trevor, I'll tell it," Kaiten interrupted. "It's my story."

I brushed my hands aside and gave him the floor. "By all means."

Kaiten cleared his throat. "I joined the military at a young age, a thousand years before Kuja was even created. I quickly became the Lieutenant of a group of knights called the Spectral Knights. We worked for the man you now call Garland. I knew him back when he was simply General Arin Saiko. Unfortunately, thanks to a botched operation, my team was killed and my soul was trapped for a thousand years. I was finally injected into Trevor's head and I've been with him ever since."

Confusion was abound with the others. I tried to explain things as slowly and simply as I could, but even so, it seemed like it was all too much at once. The few of them that did seem to believe us were horrified. Confusion and disbelief ran rampant among the others.

"This… this can't be real," Dagger said. "Trevor, I can't believe you."

"I know you can't," I admitted. "I don't have any proof of it and even if I did, would you want to listen to it?"

"Did you know my mother was going to die like that?" Dagger demanded to know. "Did you know Kuja could gain control over Bahamut and kill her?"

I was afraid someone would bring up that question. I had to hesitate for a moment before I answered, "Yes."

"How could you just let her die like that?" Dagger yelled as tears welled in her eyes. "If you knew about it, then why not try to save her? She shouldn't have to go the way she did!"

"And how did you want me to do that Dagger?" I shot back, harsher than I meant to. "Just because I knew about it didn't mean I could do anything. My first priority was to save our group. We didn't have anything strong enough to stop Kuja. Your Eidolons were the best we had, but they weren't enough, especially not when Kuja gained control of Bahamut."

Dagger just wept as Zidane came over to comfort her. He wrapped his arm around her and she had a brief sob. I felt bad for snapping at her and remembered that I was still trying to get back in everyone's good graces.

"I'm sorry Dagger," I said gently. "It's just… it's been really stressful getting pulled out of my world and into yours. I'm still getting used to a lot of things here. I've wanted to tell you all this so many times before, but I didn't think you would believe anything I said."

Steiner tried to wrap his head around the concept, but it was so new that he was having trouble. "But you just said we're all… what was the term?"

"Characters in a video game."

"Yes, that. I refuse to believe that my life is just some game to someone."

"I dunno," Amarant said. "What if this is just some crap story he's making up. If you can really control what's going on in this game, then why haven't you just killed Kuja by now?"

"The game doesn't work that way. There are rules. And besides that, I was pulled into this universe by Garland. I'm a character now too, so I have just as much control over the situation as the rest of you do."

"So you knew what was gonna happen?" Eiko asked astutely. "Every bad thing that happened you could have told us about?"

"Well, not exactly. A few things have been different, like when Zidane and Dagger crashed into Lindblum castle after we escaped from Alexandria. That never happened in the game. I've been wondering if my being here had any change on the game."

"But you knew about most of it? All that guessing and running around and risking our lives? You could have told us what we were getting into beforehand and you just didn't feel like it?"

Quina, who had been listening the entire time with his head cocked to one side, just couldn't understand the situation. "Aya, this all too confusing! I not get it!"

"And now you guys can see why I didn't tell you any of this before," I said. "None of you believe me and we're only wasting time."

However, it was at that moment Vivi found the courage to break away from the group and walk up the steps to talk to me eye to eye. "I believe you Trevor," he said quietly.

Honestly, I was taken aback by the little mage. Vivi had always been on my side, and now I needed him more than ever.

Vivi turned back to face the rest of the party from beside me. "Trevor's always been there to help us. I get why he couldn't tell us where he came from. Just look at how you're looking at him, even after he just saved us again from that water monster!"

"Kraken."

"Yeah, him. I know Trevor's a good guy and he's done a lot to help us all! I remember when we were in Cleyra and the villagers from Burmecia were chasing me and trying to attack me! Trevor nearly attacked them trying to save me! And he came up with the plan to save Cleyra!"

"Yes, but Cleyra lost it's jewel," Freya reminded us all, earning a grunt from Kaiten. "Good as his plan may have been, we still lost in the end."

"Cleyra gets destroyed in the game."

Everyone turned to regard me as I gave them the awful truth. "I knew Cleyra was doomed, so I did what little I could to save everyone. Even after we lost the jewel, I ran through the Red Rose in that stolen armor. Queen Brahne's attack missed its mark and the city and all its people were saved."

"Compare that to what happened," Kaiten butted in. "Now we have a few dead soldiers and a largely safe populace. In the game, everyone dies, the city is burned to a crisp, and the tree is leveled down to a mere stump. Now, given Trevor's efforts, which is the better result?"

Everyone was shocked to hear Cleyra's supposed fate, but not as shocked as Freya was. To hear the good that Kaiten and I did may have finally stopped her complaints about me. I was just glad that Kaiten failed to mention that it was actually Delores and not me who stopped Brahne. It only solidified my case.

"Fine," Freya said after a moment of thought. "But even if you did do all this, then why not tell us where to go or what to do? Zidane said that it was exactly what you did in Ipsen's Castle when you cleared the way to the final room."

"You've actually served in the military, haven't you?" Kaiten began answering for me. "You _do_ understand how hard good Intel is to find, don't you? Information provides a treasure trove of possible moves and actions to take. Well the two of us had a wealth of knowledge on the game, what would happen to who and when. Whenever Brahne or Kuja made a move, we were two moves ahead, ready to plan or counter our way out of anything. If we interfered and say, went to Cleyra before going to Burmecia—not that you would ever agree to that—then we risked messing up the flow of events. We would lose that knowledge we gained and we would be as blind as the rest of you. Do you get it now? Our silence was vital to keeping everything on track and keeping the rest of you alive."

Everyone pondered Kaiten's words one by one. Vivi was the only one who seemed delighted by them, as shown by his smile. However, as everyone else though, Freya of all people took a few steps forward, walking up the stairs to stand beside me. She lowered her hand, offering it to me. I took hold of her and she lifted me to my feet with little effort.

"Let's get one thing straight," she whispered in my ear. "I still don't like you, but I'm willing to work with you. Got it?"

"Good enough for me," I said back.

Freya gave me a sharp glance and let go of my hand, starting back up the stairs on her own. I turned back to the rest of the party and smiled. Some of them, like Steiner and Dagger, returned the grin and walked up the stairs as well. Steiner even gave Kaiten a nod as he passed.

"Lieutenant," he said.

"Captain," Kaiten nodded back. I suddenly remembered what Kaiten saying about not using a person's name socially unless he respected him. Calling Steiner by his title wasn't exactly the same thing, but it was a good step.

"Zidane, what about you?" I asked as he remained steadfast in his spot at the bottom of the stairs. As the first friend I made when I came to Gaia, I had hoped he would be a little more inviting as I provided all this dark, emotional information about myself, however, he seemed just as suspicious as Freya had once been.

"Zidane?" I asked again.

"Let's say I buy all this," he said calmly. "Let's say all that you've told us is true and that we really are in a video game. Fine. That still doesn't answer my biggest question."

I smiled, willing to answer anything he may have had for me. "What's that?"

"How did you survive that fall? How are you standing before us now?"

And just as quickly, my smile faded.

XXXXXXXX

Darkness.

That was all I could remember at first. My mind rolled my memories backwards, trying to account for everything. I remembered a pain in my head. And soon, more pain in the rest of my body. I pulled my hand up to my face, checking to see that it was still there.

There had been a fight. Against a dragon. Tiamat, I remembered!

He had pushed me over the edge of the platform and I fell for what felt like minutes. My head crushed against the rocks, and I should have been killed. But for some reason, I was still conscious. My hand brushed up against my face. It took all my energy to move, but I could still feel my face.

I looked around, to see where I was. Those rocks from before were gone. I didn't have anything around me as far as my eyes could see. It was hard to focus them, at first, but minutes of laying down gave me a chance to get myself back into working order.

There was sound after a long while. I tried to call out but my throat was dry. I could only cough a rasping, dry heave. The sound was coming behind me now, slow and repetitive. There was a soft _slap, slap, slap_ of someone's bare feet. I heard them stop behind me, but I was so tired that I couldn't turn to face the person.

Even though I couldn't see, I could still feel the person looking at me. I tried to call out again, but it was a wasted effort. My voice sounded like I had a mouthful of rocks in my throat.

"Stand up and move on," the voice said, his voice deep and grating. He sounded no better than I did. After a few more seconds, the soft slapping continued and I could heard the person walking away. I just laid there for several more minutes, trying to place the voice. It was familiar, but my mind moved as quickly as a dwarf in a swamp full of molasses. After a long contemplation I remembered the person.

"Kaiten?" I rasped out. I picked my head up to look for him, but again, there was only darkness. Kaiten was nowhere to be seen.

It took me plenty of time and effort, but eventually, I was able to crawl onto my elbows and knees. I shuffled weakly a few feet until I could find the energy to pick myself up. My knees buckled and my legs shook like I was in an earthquake, but I was able to stand, more or less. I shuffled a few more steps. Tiring as my effort was, the further I went, the more energy I could feel return to me.

I examined myself as I walked. Despite my fall, I couldn't see any injuries upon myself. I had the distinct impression that I had felt my head cave in, but no matter how many times I ran my hands along my scalp, I couldn't feel anything out of place. Strangely enough, it was then that I noticed that my clothes were gone as well. Maybe it was my exhaustion, or maybe it was because I felt so out of place, but that didn't bother me. There was only me and the darkness all around me.

This world was almost like the polar opposite of my subconscious. The empty, white void which allowed me unlimited control had been turned into a dark, bleak reality where I couldn't so much as clothe myself. I stepped forward and moving became easier with each step, like I could gather strength from the air around me.

Suddenly, there was a crumbling behind me. I turned just in time to see the floor where I had been laying gave way. They fell like bricks into a swirling green void. I looked at the vortex from the edge, taking cautionary steps back. The green gave the only thing I could call light in the area, even though my body seemed perfectly illuminated without it. However, the light brightened as the floor broke away, spreading out in all directions. The vortex seemed to spin faster as more bricks fell. I backed away faster and faster until I had no choice but to turn and run as fast as I could.

I ran into the darkness as the vortex spread. I saw its light dim the further I got. I was glad to see that I moved faster than it did, but that joy was soon snuffed as I saw a row of stalagmites break out of the ground before me. Like myself, it was perfectly illuminated, even without an apparent light source. The stalagmites were all red and crystalline. They seemed to pulse, with veins and life within them. It took me a moment to realize that they were made of blood, each standing a good two feet above me—too high to climb.

I looked behind and saw the vortex coming closer. I ran along the stalagmites, but as I ran, more rose up to greet me, blocking any chance of escape. I ran and ran until the sound of breaking earth stopped. There was a break in the stalagmites, a three-foot wide hallway that I was more than willing to run down. I left the vortex behind, run faster and faster as the rest of my energy returned. The stalagmites continued to guide me, forcing me down a single path.

It didn't even occur to me to question where I was or what I was doing. All I knew was that I was alone and had to find the others. Nothing else mattered for me. I didn't keep track of how long I ran. Even moving as fast as I could for several minutes, I didn't even feel winded. I felt like I could go on forever, until the stalagmites reacted.

The pathway split, with the original pathway still continuing, and another opening up just to my left. I examined the new path for a moment, but since I had no idea where I was or where I was going, either path could have been the correct choice. I hesitantly stepped down the new path, unaware of what could happen and ready to run just in case something did.

"Trevor?"

The stalagmites stopped forming, giving a false image of being in a large room. At the center of the blank space was someone I hadn't seen in years, who I missed very dearly. Someone who swore she would never talk to me again.

"Nicole?"

She looked older now, about my age, but she still dressed in that cute blue tank top and those tight jeans. Her raven hair was longer, running down her back in waves and she looked at me with a smile. My heart skipped several beats just seeing that happy grin again.

Embarrassment struck as I remembered that I was still nude. I tried to cover up, but I had no sooner moved my hands when I realized that I was wearing a black t-shirt and loose-fitting jeans. Nicole always said our fashion alone could make us a cute couple.

"Trevor, it IS you!" Nicole said, rushing to me. I was too shocked to see her that she nearly knocked me down as she crashed into me. I had to jam my leg into the ground behind myself to keep from falling.

Astounded as I was, it was all too good to be true. Nicole was here, with me, in this place, nuzzling against my chest. She had me in a tight hug and shifted her head to look up to me. I remembered that stare. It was the same one she always gave me when she was looking for a kiss.

"Trevor?" she asked, starting to get worried. "Didn't you miss me? I missed you. I'm sorry I acted that way and I forgive you for everything."

"Yeah," I admitted after a moment. "More than you know."

I questioned so many things, the possibility this was real most of all, but for the moment, all I could do was bring my arms around her and give her a kiss I had been dying to ever since we broke up. Her lips were soft and she giggled at the touch. I always loved that about her.

When we pulled back, I rested my arms around her and asked, "Nicole, what are you doing here? What is this place?"

"It doesn't matter," she said. "I just woke up here, and I was so scared. I'm just glad I found you."

Could this be real? Was this perhaps a staging area when I was transported to Gaia? Maybe something happened and Nicole had been pulled over into this world as well. It didn't make much sense, but at that moment, I didn't want it to make sense. I leaned in and kissed her again, desperate to make sure this wasn't a dream.

"C'mon, we should get out of here," I said, taking Nicole by the hand.

"What, why?" she asked. "I'm scared Trevor. I don't want to go anywhere. Let's just stay here, where it's safe!"

"But it's not safe here," I said. "The floor is falling away behind us. If we don't leave soon, we'll be trapped and we'll fall into it."

"I'm sure we'll be fine," she said, hanging off of my arm. "You're here to protect me. That's all we need. We don't need the others. We don't need Gaia! Just stay with me."

"Nicole, I can't let you die, and…" I paused for a moment, backing away from Nicole. I shook her off my arm, but she remained in place. It was like she couldn't walk forward at all. Worse, something she said stirred within my mind.

"How do you know about Gaia?"

"Well, it's obvious, isn't it?" Nicole shrugged. "It's where you just came from. Now come back to me. We can stay together like this forever."

Suddenly, the dream come true of seeing Nicole again turned into a psychotic nightmare. Now things made even less sense. Who was this woman and why was she trying to keep me here? What did she have to do with the vortex that was likely seconds away?

"Come on Trevor," she said, holding her arms wide open. "Just stay. With me."

I shuffled my feet back, never taking my eyes off of the woman. "You're not Nicole," I said. "None of this is real!"

"It is real," she said. She had lost her loving, calm voice and adopted a cold, matter-of-fact tone. "Where do you think you are? I'm your memory of Nicole. Stay with me or you could lose me forever."

I looked at the woman once more. She was everything I wanted in a girl. Smart, kind, fun and extremely beautiful. We could have been so happy together. For a moment, I considered going back to her, vortex or no. Maybe I could be happy if I stuck with her. The others could probably beat Kuja without me, right?

"No," I decided. "The others need me to help kill Kuja. It's been too long Nicole. We were young when we met and you left me without letting me explain myself. I was in love with you back then, but I'm over it now. I'm over you. Goodbye."

"Trevor? Trevor, wait!" she called after me, but stayed rooted to the room. I turned and walked away, enduring her calls to me. I would always have wonderful memories of Nicole, but I had to stop living in the past. It was time to move on.

I saw the vortex almost immediately as I found the fork in the road once more. By now it had grown so large that I could see its glow over the horizon. It expanded far into the distance like the sea. I couldn't see it through the blood stalagmites, but given the distance it covered, I could certainly guess its width. It was a mess I didn't want to get tangled in.

_No more detours_, I told myself. If I found another memory like that, I would just have to avoid it. With the vortex's fast approach, I wouldn't have time to dawdle.

It took off again, running down the hall as fast as my legs could take me.

The blood stalagmites continued to hound me, forcing me down a single corridor like a diligent border collie. The vortex couldn't keep up with me, even though I could still see its glow. I looked up above myself, wondering just how high the ceiling was, or if there even was a ceiling. The pitch-black reality I was in made depth perception almost impossible. If I didn't have the stalagmites guiding me, I wouldn't even know which way was up.

As I ran, the path widened. It was a slow process over hundreds of feet, but eventually, the path had tripled in size. I started to wonder if I would be met with another split in the road or another obstacle, but there was only a row of stalagmites blocking my path up ahead. I couldn't see all the edges of the room, but I soon began to worry if I had taken a wrong path.

"Dammit," I muttered. "Gotta get back before the vortex cuts me off."

However, when I turned around, a small, fluffy animal blocked my path. It was a border collie, with a patch of white over one eye, on all this paws, and at the tip of his tail. He sat on the ground, barking happily at me.

"Shadow…" I remembered. "Not you too…"

I knew it was Shadow because he caught sight of his tail for a moment. He charged in a quick circle chasing after it, but unlike most dogs, Shadow actually caught it. He stood there with his tail in his mouth for a moment, as if to ask, "Now what?"

I laughed. Shadow always was unique, but I tried to remind myself that this was just another memory, just like Nicole was. As much as I wanted to, I couldn't stay here. The vortex would consume the fork in the road before too long and I would be trapped with no way to escape. I knelt down and patted Shadow on the head before bringing him into a hug. Shadow gave me a single lick on the cheek and I kissed him on the head.

"Sorry Fuzz Head," I said sadly. "I have to go now."

I got up and left. It was easier to do than with Nicole, but Shadow tried to follow me. I had no reason to stop him, but as soon as he followed me to the pathway, he had a sudden convulsion. He yelped in pain and fear as he flopped around on the ground. He threw up twice and fell onto his side. He laid completely still.

"Shadow?" I asked, fearing the worst. "Shadow, did you…?"

I only had to look at Shadow's face to know the truth. He was dead. It was exactly like before. I've had to watch my puppy die three times now. No one should have to endure that.

"Shadow…" I said quietly. I knew I didn't have time to waste, but I couldn't just leave Shadow like this. I picked his small body up, cradling him in my arms, and noticed a small hole ready for me deeper in the room, next to a pile of dirt. My Shadow had been cremated, but this Shadow would have to be buried. I owed him that much, memory or not.

_What are you doing?_ a voice inside my head shouted. It was almost like Kaiten was shouting at me but it sounded much more like myself. _You don't have time for this! Get out while you still can!_

"I'll make time!" I shouted back at the voice. "It was my fault Shadow died. I have to accept that."

I set Shadow gently into the shallow grave. I tussled his hair once more before scooping an armful of dirt over him. Two armfuls were all it took to cover the small dog completely. I tried patting the dirt down as best I could, but aesthetics wasn't something I had time for. I brushed my arms off, giving Shadow one more nod.

"I'm sorry," I said, as I turned and ran.

I had no idea how much time I had spent burying my dog. Nicole and I didn't have him for long, but he made a deep impression. Every day we would trade him off so that one night, he would stay at my house, and the next, he would stay at Nicole's. It was an odd situation, but Shadow didn't care. That just meant he had more fields to run around. Although, I like to think that he had more fun at my place since I actually let him sleep up on my bed. Nicole had him stay in a doggie bed, but he kept trying to sleep next to her on her bed. It drove her nuts.

I had to wipe a tear out of my eye as I ran.

The vortex was moving up on me, so I did the only thing I could do and ran deeper into the room. One corner was still dark to me, so it seemed like my only chance. I dashed for it. Shadow's grave was soon overtaken by the swirling portal. I thought I was doomed until a small pathway emerged from the depths of the room. With no other way to go, I tore down the thin hallway, narrowly escaping the growing portal behind me.

I ran as far as I could. I ran and ran, but the vortex was faster this time. It stayed on me, making escape ultimately impossible. My only hope was that something would come along soon, to save me or stop the vortex. However, as the falling bricks nipped at my heels, my salvation came in the form of a set of stairs. Nothing in this area made sense, so why would it start to? I didn't care though and ran for it, charging up the stairs at breakneck speed.

The staircase was long, and in the darkness I couldn't tell just how long it went on. All I knew was that I was climbing it, and suddenly, I was engulfed in a white light. I lost sight of myself as the light blinded me. I tried to cover my eyes, but soon found that my arms were missing. I tried to run up the stairs some more, but I was floating. The stairs were gone and I couldn't even feel my legs.

I opened my eyes, investigating the area, but the darkness had changed to a bright light realm. Looking around, I could see only white light. It was a lot like my subconscious, but it had no floor or ceiling. Only a bright light shined overhead, seemingly omnipresent no matter where I turned to look. My body was gone and from what I could tell, I didn't have any form at all. I simply was.

"Hello?" I called out. At least I still had my voice, if nothing else. "Kaiten? Are you out there?"

"I'm right here," came the reply. "Wherever the hell this is."

"Kaiten?" I said, looking around, although without my body and in a room of pure white, I wasn't sure if I was moving around at all. It was strange, not having a sense of touch or direction like this. "Where are you? I can't see you."

"And I can't see you," he said. "I think we're right next to each other. Your voice sounds close."

"What the hell was that?" I asked. "That last area? Everything was dark and there were spikes made out of blood everywhere!"

"You saw spikes?" Kaiten asked. "I only saw the tattered remains of my team. I had to… to say goodbye to each of them. I haven't had to do something that difficult ever since I had my own body."

"Hey, the same thing happened to me. I had to face Nicole and Shadow. I had to leave them behind."

"Yes, same story with me," Kaiten said. "Where do you think we are anyway?"

"I dunno. I've been wondering that since we got here. Do you think this could be heaven?"

"_This is the Soul Cycle of Gaia._"

"Huh? Who said that?" I asked. I tried to crane my head around, but I didn't have much success. The voice just seemed to come from nowhere.

"That's General Saiko's voice," Kaiten said.

"Saiko?" I repeated. "You mean Garland is here? Where the hell are we?"

"_You may think of this as the stream through which all souls pass. The gateway to the Crystal sitting at the heart of Gaia and the center of Memoria._"

"Wait, soul stream?" I asked. "Then, you mean we're—"

"Dead, yes," Kaiten figured out. "From that fall, no doubt. But then how can we be talking like this General? I thought our souls would have been absorbed by the Crystal."

"_And they would have been, had you failed to outrun the crystal's grasp."_

"Crystal's grasp? What do you mean?"

"The vortex!" I gasped. "I knew falling into that was bad. So much for not going into the light, huh Kaiten?"

Kaiten ignored my quip and just kept probing Garland for information. "So, if we outran the Crystal, then are we souls?"

"_Yes. Souls in their purest form. You cannot die in these forms unless you choose to. However, you also cannot live without bodies. As you are, you are trapped within this realm."_

My head spun as I tried to take all of this in at once. "Well that… sucks…"

"How do we get back?"

"_You wish to return to Gaia?"_

"Obviously. Now if there's a way for us to get to this soul stream, and you have a way to contact us in here, then there's damn well a way out. Get us back into the fight."

"_Or, you could stop fighting. Stop struggling. Let yourselves go into the Crystal and live forever within the cycle. The both of you have very strong souls and would power the planet for a long time. You've done enough good. You have gotten Zidane and your other friends far. It is time to rest."_

I imagine that if Kaiten and I had bodies, we would have given each other a sideways glance just at that moment. There was a moment's pause before either of us said anything.

I was the first to speak. "I'm sorry Garland, but I think I speak for both Kaiten and myself when I say, fuck that."

"He's right sir," Kaiten agreed. "We're both young and strong. Kuja needs to be stopped and Zidane needs every hand he can get. With Trevor's knowledge and my tenacity, we should have just enough of a squad to kill Kuja and return everyone home, alive. In the realm before this one, I met with my former squadmates. I promised each of them that I would see this mission to the end, no matter what."

"I did the same with Nicole," I said. "Besides, we still have strength to fight. I'll rest when I'm dead."

"Trevor, we are dead."

"Shut up Kaiten, I'm trying to be dramatic."

"_Very well. I see how you have both chosen. I have prepared something for this occasion. Kaiten, on Terra, I told you that I had been working on a way to mend your situation. I did not have the strength at the time, but with our current proximity to the Crystal, I have been able to restore two new Genomes. Empty vessels, just like I had planned for Terra Millennia ago. Are you both prepared?"_

Kaiten grunted a "Yes", and I gave an enthused "Hell yeah!". Within moments, the air seemed to rip and black bolts arced through the sky and down the horizon. The black bands expanded, spilling over the white world like paint spilling from veins. Wind whipped at us as a deafening scream pitched higher and higher in our ears. The world spun as darkness overtook us once more.

I was out in seconds.

XXXXXXXX

Consciousness returned to me slowly.

As I rolled my head, I felt it bump into bits of gravel and pieces of warm metal. I opened my eyes to an unfamiliar sight at first. The skies were brown and swirling, violently as if in a storm. I remembered the scene though when I picked myself up and saw that I had been laying on the bent minute hand of an enormous clock. The clock's face made up the far wall, but the minute hand had long since contorted in the wrong direction, snagging against the hour hand and getting stuck. The clock was worthless but it made for a decent enough path.

I brushed myself off out of habit, but noticed something different about my clothes. I wasn't wearing my normal armor from Terra anymore, but instead had a full plate armor. It was lighter and fit more comfortably against my body, as if it had been made just for me. Hardened leather was fitted at the joints and a sleek, metallic blue covered my arms legs and torso. Moving was almost as easy as walking in a t-shirt and jeans.

A pair of ruined buildings made up the rest of what little structure there was to this place. Thin passages carried us over endless pitfalls into the swirling brown clouds below, leading to a single door seemingly planted against the air itself, yet able to lead us to an entirely separate room. We were certainly back in Memoria again. I held on to the minute hand for added support. One fall to my death was enough for one day.

"Trevor?"

I looked up and saw Kaiten making his way across the minute hand to me.

"Kaiten?" I said, shocked. "You… you got your own body?"

"I guess so," he smiled. "It feels just like my old one. The General really went all out for us. Even the armor is more expensive than what I had when I was in the army. And look!" Kaiten reached over his shoulders and pulled out a pair of katanas. "I have my Masamune back! General Saiko must have picked them up from our body when we fell."

"Not bad," I said, happy for him. However, I felt rather left out when I noticed that my own sword belt was empty. "Damn. Guess there was nothing left for me."

"Don't be so sure. Look over there!"

I turned to the platform behind myself and saw a familiar pair of red and blue short swords. After making my way to them, I gasped in surprise and picked up Crimson and Azure, my old blades given to me by the Black Mages.

"It's… How did he do that?" I asked. "I dropped these swords in the Iifa Tree, remember?"

"The well at the bottom of the tree was connected to the soul cycle, right?" Kaiten asked. "General Saiko pulled us out of that. Maybe he was able to pull your swords out too."

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but thank you Garland."

Kaiten strolled next to me, gauging my old blades as I fitted them into a pair of leather loops at my sides, acting as sheaths. "With two of us now and our strongest weapons returned to us, we'll be just about unstoppable! Kuja won't stand a chance once we find the others."

Just then, the sound of combat echoed from just the other room. Someone screamed in agony as something exploded.

"Vivi?" I said, guessing who screamed.

"I think that's our cue," Kaiten said. "You head in first. I'll stay back to assess the situation and rush in when you need it."

"Are you just trying to stay back to look cool?"

"Hey, I haven't had my own body in over a thousand years! Give me a chance to get used to this one."

"Fair enough. Let's get in there. They should be fighting the Kraken now."

XXXXXXXX

"And that's all the truth?" Zidane asked as my story came to an end.

"All of it," I said. "I didn't leave a single thing out. I'm trying to be completely honest with you guys."

Zidane's weary glance passed between myself and Kaiten. "And we can trust this guy?"

"I do. With my life. He's saved me more time than I can remember."

"Damn right," Kaiten added.

"And what's your stake in this?" Zidane asked Kaiten. "You're not from Gaia. Why do you want to stop Kuja?"

"He blew up my planet."

"Right… Good reason."

"Zidane," Dagger said softly. "We should get going."

Zidane sighed in defeat. "Alright, you two can come along. Trevor, I'm trusting you on this. You won't let us down, will you?"

"I died for you guys once today already. One or two times more should prove my loyalty."

Zidane smiled a tired smile at my dumb joke. He gave me a clap on the back as he walked passed. "It's good to have you back."

The rest of the party went on, most of them having already passed us. Kaiten and I made up the rearguard and slowly progressed up the stairs as everyone headed into the next room. It was good to be back amongst all my friends, but it was also good that I no longer had to hold anything back. A weight had been lifted from my shoulders. Things became easier for me, but whether or not anyone else noticed it, things would be easier for them. My origin was out and I had an encyclopedic knowledge of Final Fantasy IX.

I had become a walking strategy guide.


	7. Player Knowledge

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's notes: Well, my job and new position as DM for our D&D night have made this a stretch, but I actually think I fond a good balance. I've really gotten my rhythm back with writing. Turns out getting sleep is a good thing. Who knew?

Have fun with this one guys. I know I did. XD

Chapter 7- Player Knowledge

XXXXXXXX

The corner was dark. It made searching all the more difficult. A great fireball shone as part of the room, blinding me for the moment. For some reason, Garland wasn't talking, no matter how much I told Zidane to listen. However, since I had already explained my position, there was no reason to hide anything anymore. I told the others that the fireball was Gaia's birth. At the moment, it was little more than a ball of lava, but the scene was a good sign. We were nearing the end of Memoria. All we had to pass now was the space that existed before Gaia and the Crystal World, from which Gaia spawned. I could already feel my head spin from it all.

"Do we really have time for this?" Freya questioned. "We wasted enough time running almost all the way back to the entrance."

"Kuja's a thespian," I explained. "He won't destroy the world unless he has a audience. That's us. And don't worry, it hasn't been that long."

We had already spent three hours backtracking through most of Memoria, almost back to the clock room. Fortunately, the "artifacts" I had been hoping to find were all there, tucked away and hidden.

"But is it necessary?" she continued. "Surely these won't make too much of a difference."

"What did I tell you before?" Kaiten stepped in to defend me.

"The others didn't complain," I pointed out. "Eiko, how's that flute?"

The little summoner had played her new Angel Flute most of the way up the path again, chiming it and practicing. She smiled all the way and, through it's magic, made us all feel a little lighter. "I luff it!" she said, with the flute still to her lips, and continued to play.

"And Amarant?" I said, glancing back at the bandit.

Amarant was still fitting his new gauntlets on, the Rune Claws. They were dark bracers with one large claw sticking out at the fingers. The magic came from the dark red gems set into the gauntlets. Rather than speak though, Amarant took a swing at one of the nearby walls on the platform. The single swing was enough to crack the wall and disintegrate it.

"Works fine," he said.

"He's just trying to help Freya," Zidane defended. He had his newest weapon, the Tower, strapped to his back. It was a strange weapon. Rather than a slender blade, the Tower had a small, sharp triangle pointing inward on each end. I never thought of it as much, but it was too late to go back for the Ultima Weapon. The Tower glowed with energy anyway, so it had to have hidden magical qualities to it.

"Remind me," Kaiten came in again as he spoke to Freya. "Where did you get that new spear?"

Freya lifted her Dragon's Hair polearm, remembering that I was the one who had stolen it from Maliris. The comment shut her up immediately.

After another moment of searching, I finally grasped the thin weapon I had been feeling around for. I pulled it out of its hiding place, revealing a short staff in my hands, which looked more like a mace in my grip.

"The Mace of Zeus," I announced. It was a sharp yellow color and the head was ornately decorated in folded wood that curled over itself. A thin crown capped the top, shining as if there were a diamond inside of it. "Here you go Vivi."

"M-me?" the surprised mage asked. I hadn't told who the new weapon belonged to when I started looking for it since I wanted it to be a surprise for him. "Are you sure?"

"Well, yeah," I said, matter-of-factly. "It's the strongest black magic staff in all existence. With this, you can cast Doomsday."

"Doomsday?" Vivi said, his eyes growing wide. "That sounds strong!"

"It's insanely strong," I explained. "Imagine a meteor the size of the Red Rose crushing an enemy. Now imagine if that meteor was imbued with shadow magic. That's Doomsday."

"Wow! Can I try it?"

"H-h-hell no!" I laughed. "It's so strong that the blast would catch the rest of us in it. You can try casting it if everyone's behind cover or something." I didn't feel like explaining shadow-absorbing add-ons just then.

"So, what's next?" Zidane asked. "Any more weapons to grab?"

"That was the last one, unfortunately," I said. "Sorry guys."

A disappointed groan came from Quina while Dagger and Steiner frowned. "Don't worry though. I know where to find stronger weapons for you outside of Memoria. These weapons will have to do for now."

A ladder was set on the far side of the room. It was easily a hundred feet tall and was only connected on a platform high in the air. Again, physics meant nothing to this place.

"Alright, everyone up the ladder," Zidane said. "Trevor, should we expect anything up there?"

"Another Chaos Guardian," I said. "This one is called Lich, based on the Earth Guardian you had to fight." It felt really weird explaining things this way, or being this open. I had spent so much time as Trevor, college student from Alexandria University that I had stopped seeing this place as a video game. Now, speaking in video game terms made everything all the more dreamlike. I had to concentrate and not lose focus and get lost in the surrealism.

"This one's an undead type, so using White Magic on him is the best way to go," I said. "Dagger and Eiko should be our main attack battery, with Vivi and Quina as backup. Freya, Steiner, Amarant and I will act as a defense line for them. Kaiten, you'll launch volleys of arcs to keep Lich on his toes. Zidane, you'll be our flank man. Stay flexible and be ready to move to wherever we need you."

Zidane folded his arms as the others started climbing the ladder. "I'm impressed," he said. "You've really had this planned out, didn't you? Why didn't you try taking charge and leading before?"

"And steal your thunder?" I joked. "I only took charge or offered suggestions when it became necessary, like in Cleyra."

"But with what you knew, we could have had a much easier time."

"Yeah, but chicks dig good leadership," I hinted. "Especially princesses."

We both watched as Dagger started her climb up the ladder. Zidane's eyes seemed transfixed on her rear as he watched her skintight outfit ascend. After a good twenty feet, he was finally able to take his eyes off. It was a good thing she hadn't looked down to see him peeping.

"Yeah, ok," he said. "I guess I owe you one."

"I do make a good wingman, don't I?"

XXXXXXXX

The climb up the ladder wasn't a terribly long one. While "Snake Eater" played in my head, I saw the scenery change from the fiery birth of Gaia to the empty space that existed before Gaia. An ornate ballroom opened up to us. It was small, only thirty feet to a side with six walls, but its symbolic meaning made it feel like a god's throne room. I looked back and could see most of Memoria from up here. The view was spectacular, if not confusing. Again, physics were not in play in this reality.

When I turned back around, the ballroom shifted to an old style jade platform. The room and most of the walls were gone. We were left only with a tiled floor and several pillars raised in the corners. With the open sky, we could see a night sky unlike any I'd ever seen before, with shooting stars, cloudy galaxies, and even an aurora borealis somehow. A large door was all that stood between us and the realm of space.

"Look at this place!" Eiko said excitedly. "I never saw a night like this in Madain Sari!"

"This is the space in the universe before Gaia existed," I explained. "You can already see the dust in the solar system forming an accretion disk."

"Wait, so Gaia formed from dust?" Steiner asked. "How? When?"

"Well, I'm not a geologist, so I don't know how long ago it was, but I could go over how it formed once we get out of Memoria."

"What's a geologist?" Vivi asked.

And this was why I held my secret back for so long. Every question I answered just brought another question up. I gave a Vivi a short answer, saying that geologists study rocks and the planet, which seemed to satisfy him.

"So, was the crystal here first?" Dagger asked. "Or did it form with Gaia?"

"I'm not sure, actually," I admitted. "After this platform, we get into the very heart of Memoria, the Crystal World. It could be that the crystal formed and Gaia grew around it, but it could simply be the literal center of the realm. Personally, I think it's the latter option, but this entire world is so weird that anything is possible."

"It is an extension," came a voice from the void above us. "First, comes the crystal, then comes the planet. From these two, life can be formed."

I almost thought Garland was talking to us all, but then an inking shadow spurted out of the ground ahead of us. It bubbled and shot up, like a geyser. A black form rose up out of it, thin and bony. The new monster came with a red robe detailed with ornate runes and a flowing green cape with red velvet inside. A skirt of bones hung from his hips, perhaps as added armor. Grey and dull green feathers danced about on his shoulders in thick padding. Lastly, there was the helmet adorning his skull, with two enormous horns and a burning flame, like a tail feather sticking out from the top. The last Chaos Guardian, Lich, stood before us as a hideous skeleton.

"I commend your feat in reaching this point," Lich complimented. "But your life will end here. Prepare to battle."

Lich spoke with a calm, polite demeanor, like a Spanish gentleman ready to duel. He probably would have been a nice guy to have a conversation with if he wasn't trying to kill us.

"Guys, formation," I said loudly, taking charge. Our casters took up one line in the back while Steiner, Freya, Amarant and I defended them. Kaiten shot out to the left flank while Zidane ran right. I could see some of them were apprehensive about my plan. Hopefully, things would work out and they would learn to trust me again.

Lich watched us curiously. He seemed confused that we already had a plan in store for him, but he leered down at us, determined to end us all the same. His arms were equipped with long, sharp blades, which he kept at the ready. He also had an impressive and dangerous array of magic at his disposal. In my excitement to get this far, I had forgotten exactly what they were. I only hoped they were nothing we couldn't counter.

"So many enemies," Lich said. "So close together…"

I immediately hated myself when I saw Lich raise his arms high, and I suddenly remembered why he was the Earth Chaos. I dropped to my knees at once and shouted, "GET DOWN!" to everyone else.

No sooner had I warned the others when Lich struck the ground, sinking his three-foot blades into the platform. Tiles started to crack and heave, rolling like the ocean. The true strength of the attack came second later though. The floor exploded in violent shaking a second later. Entire portions broke off and lurched, shoving out as the Earthquake spell took effect.

Our defense line wasn't broken. Not exactly. Float spells would have been useful to counter with, but in lieu of that, tucking and rolling was our best option. We were bumped, beaten and bruised around, but the spell only lasted a few seconds. We were still largely in place. I stood as quickly as I could, though ever muscle I had screamed out in pain.

"Hold on," Dagger moaned. "I'll start healing everyone."

"No don't," I said. "Dagger, your heals are more potent and we need you on offence. Quina and Freya can heal us all faster with their spells."

"But what are we supposed to do?" Eiko asked.

"I already told you. Heal the Lich!"

"Are you sure? That sounds like a terrible idea!"

"Just trust me on this! We'll be fine!"

Reis' Wind and White Wind blew over us, healing us in a gentle breeze. Our wounds continued to heal as the Regen effect of Freya's spell also kicked in. We would need it just in case Lich did something else like that.

"Casters ready?" I asked, standing my ground with the rest of the defense line. "Just hit him with whatever you can!"

As Vivi and the girls charged up, Lich came in for another attack. His bone blades slashed at us, but Steiner and Amarant were able to counter him well enough. Steiner was probably the sturdiest person we had on the team and Amarant was having fun with his new toys. Each swipe left a small scorch on Lich's robe.

As the guys held Lich off, our assault line soon finished their preparations. Eiko was up first and with a cunning thought, cast Regen on Lich. Now he would take constant damage, like a disease. Dagger was next with a Curaga. The light from the spell washed over Lich gently, but the way his body twisted, he seemed to be in tremendous pain. Vivi was the last up with a Flare. Light and heat combined the power of a sun to shock Lich's body, blasting him back and knocking him to the ground. The magic barrage was a complete success.

Steiner took a step back to rejoin the defense line, but Amarant continued to press into Lich. He slashed furiously, laughing like a maniac at each explosion. Had I made a mistake in finding those for him?

Suddenly, Lich's hand raised in the air, not to attack directly, but to summon. A man in a brown hooded robe appeared behind Amarant, much in the same way Lich had appeared to us. He held a large scythe in his arms and raised his weapon.

Our shouts for Amarant to look out came a second too late. Amarant had just enough time to glance over his shoulder before the scythe landed. It dug deep into Amarant's shoulder and left a deep scar all the way to the bandit's hip. Amarant fell as he lost blood in what looked like gallons. He didn't move after that.

"Amarant!" I shouted among the other concerned voices of our group. "Eiko, Quina, get on him! Dagger, Vivi! Another barrage!"

"Enough!" Lich demanded as he charged, blades at the ready. He rushed in quickly, so quickly in fact, that only Steiner had time to counter and hold his ground. Freya came in with a deep slash to Lich's ribs, but being a skeleton, that did more damage to his robe. In return, Lich spat a thick glob of reflective green and purple film at Freya. It almost looked like an oil spill, but when I saw Freya fall to the ground in fits, I knew she had been diseased.

"I can't… hold him…" Steiner struggled to say as Lich towered over him, forcing him back. "Help…"

I came in with my own strike, cutting a Demon Saber into Lich's blade to take some of the pressure off of Steiner. However, as I struck, Lich charged his entire arm with a strange energy. It repelled my attack like two lightsabers crossing each other and didn't take any of the pressure off of Steiner. Our line was falling, and fast.

"Get away from them!"

A shout came as Zidane leapt heroically into the air. He landed on Lich's back and dug his new Tower into one side. Lich backed up in pain, thrashing to and fro, attempting to swing Zidane off, but the Tower was buried deep. No sooner had Lich backed away when a volley of Arcs came in, smashing into his chest and ripping the robe to shreds. Bones flew everywhere as Lich was soon left without armor.

"Zidane, watch out!" Dagger shouted. She and Vivi held their staves ready. Zidane pulled his blade out and jumped away, just as another stream of light washed over Lich. He screamed at first, but as the light soaked in, he soon broke into laughter, as if he were descending into madness.

"Your efforts are meaningless," Lich said. "I may have been created from the memories of Terra's Guardians, but I have domain over death itself!"

Just then, an inky black glob formed in his hand. It looked like the same attack he had hit Freya with. However, instead of attacking us, he swung his hand around and slapped himself in the chest. He shoved the spell into himself as the glob absorbed into his bones. Like some overloaded calcium shot, the small chips in his bones healed and he was able to stand tall and strong.

He let out rolls of laughter. Zidane came in for another backstab, but Lich was ready this time and swung around with a backhand. The thief crashed into a pillar at the edge of the room and suddenly, we were down three fighters.

"Quina start healing," I said. I had to think of something, and fast, but what? The white magic wasn't killing him fast enough, and he was too agile for Steiner to go after. I could try to combine with Kaiten for some combo attacks, but that would leave our caster line undefended. I shot down every possibility that came to mind as soon as I thought about it. Nothing worked.

"Trevor!" Kaiten shouted as he dashed about on the far side of the room. "Hit me! Use reflect!"

With all the time Kaiten spent in my head, he had plenty of time to go over strategies. However, there were certain gaming strategies which I had never tried in my time in Gaia because they had either been too risky or because I didn't think I could get the others to follow along. Now was not the time to worry about that though.

"Dagger, Vivi, I have a plan," I said. "Don't question it, just do it!"

"What?" Dagger asked. "What is it?"

"We're gonna need a stronger push against his magic. Dagger, cast Reflect on Kaiten. Vivi, use Flare on him!"

"Flare?" Vivi questioned. "You mean hit Lich with it?"

"No. Attack Kaiten!"

"What? But I thought he was on our side! Why would I attack him?"

I didn't have time to explain. Every second we wasted was one more Lich could use to kill us. "I don't have time to explain dammit! Dagger, do it now! Vivi, cast Flare when Kaiten calls out for it! We'll need our timing to be spot on for this."

Dagger and Vivi just glanced back between each other. "Trevor, are you sure about this?" the queen asked.

"Dagger, trust me," I said. "Kaiten and I made up a lot of plans when he was inside my head. This will work, but I need you to trust me."

I could see that Dagger and Vivi were extremely hesitant, but then Lich rushed us again, hard. He bashed right into Steiner, forcing him back several feet. I ran in to help, but Lich was twice my size and at least twice my strength. I did what I could, but Steiner's frame and his heavy armor was the best thing he had from reaching out casters. If they went down, then we really were in trouble. We just needed a way to push him back for Kaiten's plan to work.

"1000 Needles!"

"Holy!"

Suddenly, a pair of attacks burst forth from over my shoulder. Hundreds of needles sprung forth from Quina's skin and shot forth into his towering target. As Lich started to back up, a string of Holy light shot through him, wrapping around his body and piercing where it could. The light burned Lich where to touched as the guardian screamed and backed away at last.

I turned back to Quina and Eiko, just as they were finishing their attacks. Quina's shirt was a mess full of holes and Eiko looked tuckered out, but they had reacted perfectly. Dagger, Vivi and Kaiten now had the room they all needed.

"Ready?" Dagger called out to my partner.

"Do it!" he shouted back. I could see him brace himself in preparation for the assault. If he could actually pull this off, then I would be some kind of impressed.

As Dagger cast her spell, a red light shone over Kaiten's body. A curved mirror seemed to flash in front of him for a moment before it faded. Kaiten stood behind Lich and ran in from the Guardian's rear flank. His blades glowed as he leapt onto Lich's back and dug his blades in deep. The Guardian howled in pain and a hollow, almost ghostly cry came over the room.

"Trevor!" Kaiten shouted.

"Vivi, do it!" I said to the little mage.

But Vivi hesitated, holding the spell back. "Are… are you sure this will work?"

"Just do it!" Kaiten roared. Lich started thrashing about, threatening to throw Kaiten any second.

"Vivi, he'll be fine," I said. "You have to trust me."

Vivi was still afraid to attack, I could tell, so I had to drop my guard and lower myself to his level. Looking at him in the eyes, I told him, "Kaiten's strong, but he can't hold out. This all depends on you right now Vivi. Everyone needs to attack at once. Can you do it?"

Vivi took a deep breath. His voice shook as his nerves took hold and slowly left. After a few seconds, he nodded without saying a word. I stepped aside to give him a clear shot.

Although Kaiten's blades sank into Lich's armor, grabbing hold between bones in the Guardian's ribs, there was only so much he could take. He was holding on, barely by one blade, when he had no choice but to slam his feet against Lich's back and launch himself off. He stared at Vivi and aimed carefully, leaving himself open for attack.

Vivi found the courage to act just in time. As Eiko used another Holy spell and Dagger finished charging another Curaga, Vivi launched his spell, hitting Kaiten square in the chest. But the spell didn't erupt. Instead, it ricocheted off the reflect spell, exploding on Lich's back while the Curaga washed over him and the Holy lanced through his chest and stomach. All the magic compounded on each other and the reflected Flare was stronger than usual thanks to the combination. Everyone in the room could feel the heat from the spell and the light gathered as Lich held is arms out, defiant to the end. We all had to cover our eyes as the light overtook us. There was no sound, save for a high-pitched echo, which screamed louder until we couldn't hear it.

When the sound died, the light faded. We all turned back to where Lich had been standing. There was only a pile of ash and bone chips remaining.

"Nice job," I said to the others. "Girls, get the others back to full strength. Kaiten, you alright?"

Kaiten was pulling his Masamune out of a rib cage from the pile of bones. "Landed on my leg funny when I fell. Might be bruised."

"We'll get Dagger to kiss it better in a minute."

Kaiten rolled his eyes and flipped me off while Dagger insisted she would do, "No such thing!"

I knelt down to Vivi as the others recovered. He just looked at me curiously for a moment before I grinned at him, offering a congratulating slap on the shoulder. His eyes squinted upwards and I knew he was smiling.

"That was an effective plan," Steiner said as everyone recovered and regrouped. "You accounted for everyone's abilities and maintained flexibility. You are a true stratigist."

"I agree," Dagger said. "I could use you in my court when this is over. We'll need to stay one step ahead of any enemy of Alexandria, and you seem to specialize in that." She glanced up at Kaiten. "And I could always use another knight."

Steiner didn't seem to take the offer as graciously as Kaiten or I though. "Uhh… Your Highness? What about—"

Dagger stifled a giggle. "You won't be replaced Steiner. No one could replace the Captain of the Knights of Pluto."

Steiner, remembering his duties, stood up straight in respect. "Yes, Your Highness!"

I walked over to Kaiten, giving him a well earned high five. "That was ballsy," I said. "We've never tried that before. You could have been fried."

"I've seen it done before," he admitted. "The Spectral Knights didn't have any white mages so we couldn't practice ourselves, but I imagine Remus could melt through any reflect spell we through at him anyway. I just wanted to see if it could work."

"And you call me reckless."

Everyone healed quickly, but when they did, they all converged on me, not on Zidane.

"Alright, where next?" Zidane asked.

I had to pause for a moment, assessing the situation. I had expected them to go to Zidane for the next move. I looked from faces that had once stopped trusting me and that I had stopped trusting. Now they looked at me in anticipation, ready for whatever came next. But I didn't get it. Zidane was the leader, not me.

"You're asking me?" I asked. "But Zidane, I'm not the leader. I though… I mean…"

"Sometimes, you have to know when someone else is better suited at a job," Zidane explained. "And right now, we need you to do this. You're the best choice."

All around him, the party nodded, agreeing and encouraging me. I was surprised by the view and even felt a little moved. I glanced back at Kaiten, who just smiled for me. He gave a sarcastic bow. I would have to hit him for that later, but it was nice, for now.

I looked to the far side of the wall. The large jade doors were still standing. They opened easily enough, but they revealed all the glories of space in one breathtaking view.

Stars shined, nebulas shifted like they were caught in a breeze, and galaxies spun and faded in and out of existence. We were watching the entire history of the universe as the Crystal saw it play out. I watched in silence, feeling dizzy when I realized I had been so stunned I had forgotten to draw breath.

Slowly, hesitantly, I stepped up to the doorway. I kept a hand on the frame, but lifted one foot after the other into space. My heart jumped as I started floating. The sensation was both exhilarating and horrifying. It felt like I was swimming in a deep pool, only here I had much less control. Not even water to push against. I let go of the doorframe and floated before the others, doing my best to keep my excitement under control.

"We're supposed to go out there?" Zidane asked.

"Don't worry, it's safe," I said, reaching my hand out. There wasn't air, per say, but I could feel the space at the edge of my fingertips getting denser. In a way, we had a corridor leading us out. A glance behind myself showed a shimmer in space. That was where we had to go.

"Everyone, just push yourselves off from the platform and aim for that," I said. I kicked off from the doorframe and lazily floated through space.

It wasn't far to the shimmer. Perhaps only a hundred feet, but within that hundred feet, I saw the universe unmake itself and condense, only to explode and reform. Planets, suns and solar systems died hundreds, thousands of times before me, and all this happened before Gaia even formed. I felt small. Smaller than I thought possible. Would destroying the Crystal really destroy this entire universe? Most likely not, but it would certainly destroy Gaia.

For the umpteenth time since I came to Memoria, I had lost myself in thought. I nearly floated into the shimmer haphazardly, unaware of how close it even was. Most of the others were floating up behind me. Kaiten had been the first of them to jump. I had no idea what exactly to expect, but I felt safer with him at my back.

I took a deep breath to calm myself before I reached for the shimmer. There was nothing solid to grab, but I felt the warmth the second my hand passed through it. It welcomed me, bringing me in closer as I passed through.

Light covered me, and although I thought I knew what I would find, I was still shocked and amazed at this new realm. Nothing I had done in traveling through Gaia could have prepared me for this, the most beautiful sight I had ever seen in my life.

The Crystal World opened itself in all its splendor to me.


	8. Inner Demon

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author notes: I'm real sorry that this chapter was late guys. I tried working through the night of the 9th to get this out on time, but after 6 hours, I started making real basic mistakes and plotholes which I had to go and fill in, so I had to stop and get some sleep. As such, this month's chapter is a few days late. XP This is just another reason why I wish I could quit my job and write all day. I'm going to do my best to get the next chapter out on time though, I promise.

But anyway, we have a fun backstory/reveal for Shattered Mind in this chapter.

Before I started Shattered Mind, I was a huge fan of the Prince of Persia: Sands of Time Trilogy (still am!). Some of you may have guessed this already, but I took a decent amount of inspiration for setting Kaiten and the mental duality from the third game in the series, The Two Thrones. You can see a bit of a tribute in the dialogue from one of my favorite parts of the game down below. It's just a little something that I've been planning for a while, so hopefully my damn work schedule won't get in the way.

Also, 50-hour work weeks suck. XP

Chapter 8: Inner Demon.

XXXXXXXX

It was beautiful.

Everything was crystal, or diamond, or geode. Some things sparkled directly in front of us while others shined from a thousand feet away. The path we walked was thick quartz suspending itself in space. Globes of spiraled and molded crystal floated around, perhaps representing old worlds that existed before the Crystal, or other worlds the crystal inhabited. All the while, aurora borealis of green and blue raced through the air, and all the while, I could hear the harps from the game playing. It was all so incredible I wanted to sit down and cry. This was what I wanted heaven to look like.

Everyone paused to take in the sights as they all teleported in, one by one. There wasn't much room on the thin platform, but we spread out, slowly taking the new world in. This place was even better than the wide expanse of space that we just left.

"This place…" Zidane gasped as soon as he was in. "Trevor, are we _inside_ the Crystal?"

"I don't think so," I said. "Probably just the very beginning of its memories, right after its own creation."

"Cool," Vivi said, kneeling down to pat the pathway through his hands. It was smooth to the touch, like glass.

"This place is so pretty!" Eiko said.

""All the architecture of Alexandria cannot equal this place," Dagger said. "How is any of this possible?"

"Some damn magic from the Crystal," Amarant said impatiently. "We're close, right?"

"We're very close," I answered. "Kuja is just at the end of this path. Everyone make sure you're ready though. He's not the only one we'll have to fight."

"He's not?" Zidane asked. "Does he summon more monsters?"

"One more, yes. The first one's name is Deathguise. You know how the Chaos Guardians were based off of the Guardians of Terra? Well this guy is based off of Taharka, the beast guarding the mirrors in Ipsen's Castle."

"That thing? That's weird. Why make a monster based off of him?"

"Terran lore, I'll bet," Kaiten said. "The mirror guardian was protecting the path to Terra, just like the Four Fiends were. Perhaps Kuja thought it was fitting to include him."

"And where do these beasts fall in Terran lore?" Steiner asked.

"Old polytheistic religion," Kaiten explained. "People believed that the four elements guided us in all that we did, with a head deity which guided the elements. I never got into it myself, but there were only pockets of worshipers back when I was alive."

"Well, what else is there?" Zidane asked. "Death Guy and Kuja sounds bad enough."

"Deathguise," I corrected. "And there's one more. Necron. He's… hard to explain."

"Why? Kuja didn't base him off of anything else?"

"Kuja didn't make him at all," I said, to the surprise of everyone else. "Necron is an eternal deity, sort of like a god. He's basically a floating torso that casts nonstop status effects. Dagger, Eiko, you'll have to stay on your toes to keep those at bay."

"Wait, a god?" Zidane said. "We have to live through that?!"

"So they actually exist?" Amarant asked.

No one seemed pleased with what I had to say. I had proven myself so far though, so at least they believed me. It was better than them thinking I was lying and walking in unprepared. Especially considering how hard Necron was in the game. To tell the truth, I wasn't worried about Kuja nearly as much as I was the Zero World denizen.

"Look, we're not going to get anything done by standing here talking about it," Kaiten said. "We need to find Kuja. We'll fight whatever we have to when we get there."

"Kaiten's right," Zidane said. He cleared his throat and stepped to the front of the party. He had a solemn look about him. "Listen up guys. Trevor says we have three more very difficult fights ahead of us. Everything we've done up to this point was preparation for these fights. All the fighting we've done, the weapons we've picked up, the techniques we learned are going to be vital. The wars we ended, the nations we traveled to, and every single person we saved along the way was our training. Kuja can now destroy the Crystal, which powers all life on the planet. If he does, then every single thing we've done in our lives… Every single thing everyone has ever done in their lives will have meant nothing! We can't let him do that!

"I wasn't born on Gaia, but I grew up here! I came to love so much of life here on this planet. And…" Zidane paused for a moment as his gaze passed by Dagger's anxious face. She blushed slightly. Zidane cleared his throat and continued his inspiration speech. "We can do this guys! Just the ten of us can stop the biggest threat to the planet. We are the best that Gaia has to offer!" He earned a round of cheers for that one. Zidane saw Kaiten and I standing together, not quite joining in with the others' enthusiasm. "And we have the best from Earth and Terra with us! So we have everything to gain and everything to lose! So let's not lose!"

The battle roar was enormous. I could feel the crystal path shaking under my feet just before everyone took off down the twisting path. Physics at least seemed back to some sense of normalcy now. Gravity was back in place and the memories now resembled a winding cave. It was still intensely weird, knowing exactly what reality we were in. I was going to have to write a book about all this when we were done.

Kuja didn't have long to wait for us. Within two minutes, we had charged all the way to him. A tunnel of crystals turned a corner and opened to a wide hallway. At the end of the hall was an enormous room, far bigger than what the game showed. A rune-etched floor glowed red on a pink crystalline floor. Clouds covered the bottom of the cavern, just like the entrance of Memoria outside the castle. Small stalagmites held the floor up and bridged our way to a small glass platform at the end of the hallway.

And, waiting for us, floating in the center of the room, was Kuja, standing watch over the Crystal. He was still glowing red, able to maintain Trance due to the soul power he absorbed from The Invincible.

Zidane took point and ran down the hall first, with everyone else in tow. Kaiten and I stood together in the back. "KUJA!" Zidane yelled up, catching his brother's attention.

Kuja turned his back to the Crystal and gave us his trademark cocky grin. "How nice of you to come," he said. "You certainly took your time."

"Told you he'd wait," I gloated to the others.

"I'm surprised that you beat the Four Chaoses that I created from the Crystal's memory. But… you're too late." Kuja floated back, giving us a clear view of the Crystal, in all its glory.

The Crystal just spun slightly in the air, surrounded by a large disk of silver, and twin energy beams of blue and red, always circling. It must have been just bigger than Vivi, but not by much. Could such a small stone be responsible for all life on the planet? Did Earth have a similar Crystal?

We couldn't let Kuja destroy it.

"Take a good look," Kuja said. "Isn't it beautiful?" He actually sounded entranced by it. "This is the original Crystal. This is where it all began. The birthplace of all things on this planet. Once I destroy it, everything will be gone. Alexandria, Lindblum… all life on Gaia, gone. Your lives and memories too, of course!" Kuja burst into laughter, drunk on his insane machinations.

"Shut up!" Zidane shot back. "The only thing that's gonna be gone is you! We'll take you out right now!"

Kuja scoffed. "You honestly think you can beat me? Even if you do, Gaia's already doomed. Its assimilation by Terra has already begun, and the Iifa Tree will incite a cataclysmic destruction of Gaia! It's all over for you and your friends! You see, I win either way."

"The hell you will!" Amarant, of all people, was the first to shout. "We've beaten you every time and we're gonna do it again! I'm gonna kick your ass inside-out!"

"So the arrogant rogue speaks," Kuja taunted. "Have you started any more fights within your party? You're the most selfish man down there."

"And you're not?" Eiko shouted up. "You're trying to destroy the world just because you're dying! That's the most selfish thing I've ever heard of!"

"And the first brat speaks. I'm surprised you turned out the way you did, after your entire village was slaughtered. What was it like living alone for so long?"

"Sh-Shut up!" Eiko cried out as her cheeks flushed and tears threatened to pour out.

"You are monster!" Quina defended. "How can you do this?"

"_I'm_ a monster?" Kuja jested. "Just look at you! You're from a race of clown people. I'm at least pleasant to look at. You're the real monster. I'm still human."

"You ARE a monster!" Vivi shouted. "You've killed so many people! You've started wars! You don't get to call yourself a person!"

Kuja grinned. "Ah, and the puppet speaks, at last. Or, should I say, the other monster? You were made, boy. How many people have you killed? How do you know you weren't programmed to merely think you had free will? Maybe you've been under my control the entire time!"

"N-No… I…" Vivi hesitated. He started to step back as the thoughts flooded his mind, but Steiner held his hand out, stopping Vivi's retreat and protecting him, giving him something to rely on.

"That's enough," Steiner said firmly. "Kuja, you went too far ages ago. What you're doing is easily the worst thing anyone has ever done in the history of the planet. We've come to bring you to justice."

"And what would the subservient knight know of justice?" Kuja asked. "You've sworn your life away. You're basically a slave! At least the puppet tries to seek his identity! You've lost yours long ago!"

"That's not true!" Dagger sudden spoke. "Captain Adelbert Steiner is my most trusted advisor and friend. The kingdom of Alexandria would be worse off were it not for him and his valiant efforts!"

"Princess… So naïve," Kuja smirked.

"It's 'Queen' now. You murdered my mother."

"Then perhaps you should act like a queen. Instead, you continue these ridiculous adventures, like a child. Although, you would have made an excellent queen in my own kingdom. Oh well, we can't always get what we want. Well… you can't!"

As Kuja rolled in another fit of laughter, Zidane stepped forward. He shouted through his brother's laughter, practically baring fangs. "KUJA! None of this matters! Even if Gaia is assimilated, a planet will remain! We'll start over and make a new home! You're nothing but a coward! If you want to die, fine, but leave the rest of the planet out of it!"

Kuja seemed confused by the mere suggestion. "Why should the world exist without me? That wouldn't be fair. If I die, then we all die!"

"Bullshit!" I said at last. I pressed my way through the crowd, standing next to Zidane. "Kuja, you don't have a chance. You're going to lose this!"

Kuja eyes me curiously. "Does the angry wildcard have something to say?"

"We both do," Kaiten said as he walked beside me. He gave me a nod, which I returned. "We were both hand-picked to kill you. With everyone else behind us, you won't live beyond today."

"I'm supposed to feel threatened by a relic?" Kuja said, to our surprise. "Oh yes, I know about you, Lieutenant Saeis. And you, McEvoy, isn't it? I know all about Project Soulforge."

My eyes shot open. How did he know about that? Project Soulforge was our holdback, the information we needed to keep from Kuja to stop him from preparing against us. I had hoped to surprise Kuja with our abilities since Kaiten and I weren't part of the regular storyline and Purple Magic was a dead art. That plan was out now.

"What did you think I did when you opened the portal to Terra for me?" Kuja taunted. "Did you think I only waited in the shadows, sneaking silently? Fools! I went to Garland's Observatory to learn more about Zidane! Imagine my surprise when I learned he had a secret project started against me. My own father!"

"Then you know we're the best team against you," I said. "One of the greatest fighters in Terran history and an Earthling with near-perfect knowledge of Gaia and Terra. Both armed with Purple Magic and who can Trance!"

"Oh, you made a formidable team. When you were together. Now, you're as weak as everyone else here!"

Kaiten unsheathed his katanas. "Wanna take that bet?" he threatened. "I've taken out casters stronger than you when I was in Special Forces!"

"As a coordinated, military team, perhaps," Kuja said. "But I prepared something special for the both of you. You won't believe this kinds of things you can discover by searching through the Crystal's memories. Even things you've buried within yourself can come out with all the intense fury you once possessed!"

I tried to think about what Kuja meant, but his phrase of 'things I buried' only brought one thing to mind. I turned to Kaiten with a very concerned look on my face. "Kaiten, he couldn't mean _him_, could he?"

"No," Kaiten said, just as concerned as I was. "No, that's not possible! He never came out! You sealed him on Terra! He was never on Gaia!"

"No, wait…" I realized. "He talked to me on Gaia… Would that be enough?"

Kaiten's gaze returned to the Crystal. It was the most powerful thing we had ever encountered. We didn't know what it was limited by. Kaiten just shook his head to the question. "I really, really hope not."

"Oh yes," Kuja laughed. "This one is just for you both! Say hello to an old friend!"

Kuja placed a hand on the Crystal, reading its memories. The red and blue beams circling it spun faster, beginning to blur together into a purple haze. A pillar of light shot out of the top and spread open, like a veil was piercing reality. A dark, winged being stepped out of the pillar.

There was a distinctive humanoid figure at the center of this beast. Brown skin covered his body and wings, though a thicker, black carapace covered his chest, legs hands, and the back of his wings. His wingspan alone was over thirty feet long. His feet were hooves, his arms were the size of tree trunks, and a tail sprouted from his back, composed of hundreds of spiked segments, stretching over forty feet long. His head was capped with a tall hood. If it weren't for the carapace there as well, the hood would have looked like a large flap of skin. If "demonic angel" could ever describe someone, it described this monster.

"What the hell is that?" Zidane asked as the monster stood fully formed before us. "Is that Deathguise?"

I could only stare at first. My mind raced as I remembered the last time I fought this bastard. "No," I said at first. "I mean, yes, it is, but… this is bad…"

"Why?" Zidane said. "I thought you knew what was going to happen."

"Things have changed since we've been here," Kaiten explained more calmly than I could. "This is just another unexpected turn of events."

"Unexpected? How so?"

Deathguise reared his head back and roared. Even his breath seemed thick with hatred. He gazed over the party, then settled when he saw me.

"Trevor," he chuckled. "Like my new body? I think it's an improvement over my last one."

Everyone gasped, or shouted over the new development. Freya was the first to talk when she asked, "Is this something else you didn't tell us about?"

"Trevor?" Zidane said. "What is this? Does this thing know you?"

"It's… complicated," I said. I took a few steps away from the group and looked up, pulling both short swords out. "Hello Damien."

Deathguise chuckled joyfully, as if he were genuinely happy. "You have no idea how good it's to be out of your wretched mind! It was so confining and empty at the same time."

"Are you the same Damien?" I shouted up. "How did you get out? I sealed you!"

"Am I the one you fought? You'd better hope not. I seem to remember you barely coming out of that one alive. No mommy around to save you this time! No magic books or precious memories. Did you ever figure out which book you destroyed?"

Zidane, Steiner and Amarant pushed forward to stand with me, weapons at the ready. "How do we beat him Trevor?" Zidane asked.

"We don't," I said, breaking from the path. "You stay back. I'll handle him."

"What?! Are you kidding?" Zidane said. "Trevor, there's no way you can take this guy on your own!"

"I don't care. This guy is my problem."

"Surely you can use our assistance!" Steiner offered. "Don't go into this alone!"

"Sorry Steiner," I said. "This guy is here because of me. It's my fault. I need to do this alone."

"Trevor!" Vivi called out from the crowd. "We're your friends!"

"That's why I can't let you guys get hurt by this," I said. "My demon, my problem. Just stay back. I'll have him down in a few minutes."

I stepped onto the glass platform alone. I extended a Demon Saber from Azure, my blue short sword, slicing through the ground and severing my contact with the others. The glass platform began to float towards the center of the room, closer to Damien. He was certainly amused by my decision, but it was final. Damien only existed because I lost control over myself. He was my fault, and I would be damned if I let my problems hurt anyone else ever again.

Suddenly, the glass platform shook. I looked beside myself and saw Kaiten picking himself up next to me. Shocked at his brazen move, I nearly took a swing at him.

"Dude, what the hell?!" I shouted. "I said I'd do this alone!"

"I heard what you said," he explained. "It was idiotic, so I ignored it."

"Damien came from me! He's my fault! I have to—"

"I heard your speech back there. I was next to you, remember? Don't waste your breath."

"But Kaiten—"

"Save it," Kaiten interrupted. "Trevor, you're the only friend I have left. This was always our fight. The two of us, together. I'll never let you fight alone again if I can help it."

I sighed as the platform lazily hovered towards our target. Much as I didn't like letting him risk it, it was good to have him at my side. Kaiten and I were more compatible together in a fight than anyone else in the party. He really was the best one to have at my side. Defeated, I shook my head and smiled.

"Alright. Let's kill him again, shall we?"

"At least he can't freak you out with old memories this time," Kaiten joked.

"Yeah, good thing," I agreed. "Just try not to get torn in half again."

Damien roared as we closed the gap. He entire cavern seemed to shake with his fury. Sections of walls broke off and shot closer to the Crystal., some flat and long, some thin and tall, but it rapidly changed the environment. New walls and platforms hovered in space around us, constantly shifting. All different shapes and sizes mixed into a translucent forest. They all seemed to react like our glass platform, so hopefully they would support our weight as we climbed to fight Damien.

This fight was shaping up to be as intense as our first bout against him.

"Remember, he casts high-level magic, and he can probably cut us up with that tail of his," I reminded Kaiten.

"Which is why we should try to out-flank him," Kaiten suggested. "He has a bigger body this time. He won't be able to move as quickly."

"Yeah, but he also has three dimensions to fly around in."

"So do we."

Kaiten left first, launching off from the platform and jumping to a new platform. Gravity seemed to be lowered by the Crystal's power. I had no idea how that was possible, but everything seemed possible here. Kuja just pulled the memory of an evil voice from inside my head out of a magical rock. I wasn't about to begin questioning the logic of this place.

I kicked off the platform, and jumped to one closer, landing easily enough. Although I had already experienced weightlessness, I was going to need a few more jumps before I could get used to fighting in this arena. That was time I likely didn't have though. Kaiten was already far ahead, running to meet Damien. The attacks would be coming for me soon too. I had to get used to it, and fast.

"You're a bigger idiot that I thought!" Damien laughed as he flew his new body around the room. "You barely beat me last time we fought! Not having your friends help is just gonna get you killed!"

"You forget!" I said. "We're not in my head anymore! Reality applies! You have to fight with the same rules that we do!"

Damien turned to me and gave me a crooked grin. "You're limited too."

Faster than I could track, Damien rushed at me. He swam between the floating crystals like he had been doing it his entire life, not even brushing against them. He flew below my platform and I had just enough time to jump to a new platform when a demonic claw tore through the center of the platform, breaking it in half and sending the pieces flying apart.

"Are those the same swords you fought me with?" Damien asked. "You found them again? Interesting! Now you can know you never stood a chance, even with your strongest weapons!"

I took both Crimson and Azure in my hands. Crimson, with its thick cleaver edge and Azure, with its jagged, serrated edge. These swords were insanely powerful, but they both held one secret that I never used on Damien. They each had their own natural magic elements of fire and water. I might be able to use that to my advantage, especially if Damien didn't know about it.

"Perhaps, but you're making one dangerous mistake," I said, getting ready to move.

"A mistake?" Damien asked curiously. "What could that be?"

"You're acting like I'm fighting alone."

I ducked, falling to my knees, just as Kaiten came flying in behind me. His swords were powered up and ready to attack. Without a moment to lose, he launched a series of Arcs at Damien. "Arc Storm!" he shouted.

Damien saw the attack coming though and flew off, flicking his tail at a long crystal pillar, blocking the attack and saving himself. The pillar was shattered into dozens of pieces and the monster got away unscathed.

"Dammit!" Kaiten blurted out. "So I am gonna have to get closer."

"Good try though," I said. "If we keep surprising him like that, we're bound to get a few hits in soon enough."

"Unless I see it coming."

We turned around and saw Damien creeping up behind us. Kaiten and I both ran to opposite sides of the platform, just as Damien's claws came in underneath where we had been standing. He split this platform in half as well, but the weigh shifted so suddenly that the platforms flung us in different directions.

I landed on the end of a crystal pillar. My head spun as I tried to figure out which way was up. I wasn't falling, but I could see that I was standing sideways in regards to where I had been standing on the last platform. In the redefined gravity of this place, up seemed to be wherever the Crystal wasn't. It was like fighting at the planet's core, with one localized gravity well and several platforms free-floating around it.

This place was a physics major's nightmare.

I had lost track of Kaiten, but I saw Damien flying around easily enough. He passed through the spaces between the floating crystals. I only had the occasional glimpse of him, and in the back of my head, the Jaws theme was playing. Still, I couldn't just sit and wait to be attacked. I had to go and actually attack, like Kaiten had. It was true that Damien scared me. Once it was because of was afraid of becoming him. I guess part of that fear still lingered. Besides, I had fought worse enemies and worse odds.

Hadn't I?

I took a running start and launched myself off the crystal and onto another one spinning sideways. Azure dug into the side of the thick crystal, giving me a handhold as I stealthily spun around. Could the others see me fighting like this? Could they see where Damien was hiding? I kept thinking how much easier this might be if I had them helping me, but then I would remember that this was all my fault in the first place.

A flash of movement caught my eye below me. Dark, leathery skin passed just below a layer of crystal. Damien was still looking for me as well. Fortunately, I had the upper hand. He made another pass around a crystal, giving me a chance to attack. I took a breath and pulled Azure free, falling through the crystal forest.

Walls and pillars passed by perilously close. I slid against one as it shifted around me. I was nearly thrown off course when I came to the last few feet of the drop. I had just enough time to reorient myself when I landed on Damien's back. Instinct kicked in, but I sank Crimson deep to act as a handhold instead of Azure, which proved to be my folly. The second Damien felt me land, he twisted his entire body, flipping around and elbowing me in the chest.

I was thrown into another crystal and fell again. I saw more crystals pass by and landed hard on my side. Crimson bounced beside me. I just reached out and laid my hand on it, but that was all I could do. The wind had left me and I coughed, gasping desperately for air.

"Pathetic, as always!"

Damien flew into view just overhead. Light emanating from the crystal made his dark form even darker. He seemed to swallow up the light and didn't allow any more to pass behind him. He really was like a demon.

"You were never good enough to beat me," he gloated. "Even in your mind, you blew your only chance to really kill me. Your mother came and saved you. Now, I'm stronger than ever. Perhaps its best that I earned this body instead! Yours breaks too easily."

"You're just going to die," I gasped. "Either I'll kill you, or you'll die when Kuja destroys the Crystal. Are you really so stupid that you can't see that?"

"I don't care," Damien said. "I just want to see you twist, suffer and die. As long as I can accomplish that, I'll die a happy man."

I started to pick myself up. My body was more bruised than I thought. My arms hurt to move and my legs were stiff. I could only put on a brave face as I stared up at Damien, reflecting his hatred, but controlling it. I let myself become him once. I wouldn't repeat that mistake.

"That's all you want?" I asked. "You just want to kill me? That's all you want in life? What happens after you kill me? Did you even think that far?"

"It doesn't matter to me! All that matters in life is strength and revenge! Even your own group of heroes talks of 'getting stronger' and 'stopping Kuja'! And you! You have a combined strength of both Trance and Purple Magic, a combination that's never been heard of! You have the greatest power the world has ever known and you're not going to make a grab for power? I would do it justice, and so it should be MINE!"

"YOU ARE JUST A PARASITE! YOU DESERVE NOTHING!"

"But don't I? Have I not earned it? Do you think you could have made it this far if not for me? How many times did I save you? How many times did I unblock your path? Take down your enemies? Remind you of your mission? While all you did is whine about your friends not liking you, and Nicole, and Shadow! How everything bad always happens to you! BOO HOO PRINCE!"

"Your words are empty. They've always been empty. You are just a desperate, selfish spirit clinging to the past."

"If I am selfish, it is because you are!" Damien snapped. "If I am reckless and ruthless and lacking in morals, it is because you are! I did not spin myself out of the ether! I was not conjured by some mad scientist! I am you."

"No, you're not! I've made mistakes and paid for them. I saw what those mistakes did and who they hurt! I am no longer that person."

"Seasons change. Tastes change. But people? People never change, and you delude yourself thinking otherwise. Do not fight me. Embrace your death and I will make it quick."

I capped both short swords with Explosions and glared at Damien. "How about I cut you down instead?"

Damien laughed, and in his new body, it was this disgusting, guttural laugh, like someone being strangled and gasping for air. "Either way, I get what I want." He raised both hands above himself and created a rock on the far side of the room. It was heated and glowed red, but I could see the meteor coming. I just wasn't sure how to defend myself.

"You will die!"

Damien flung the Meteor at me, throwing both arms towards my platform. I could only brace myself for a moment as the red rock hurled through the air at incredible speeds. Both swords were braced above my head as I held my breath, waiting for the unavoidable impact.

The impact came harder than I had anticipated. While the Explosions caught the Meteor and blew it to pieces, the force of the attack alone was enough to knock me to the ground again. My knees buckled and shoulders collapsed all at once as chunks of rocks rained over me, pelting my body as I laid still, gasping for air.

"You lasted even less time this go-around than you did last time," Damien chuckled. "As I've said, I'm in a far stronger body now. You never stood a chance, even if you were smart enough to bring your friends this time."

Damien's wings fluttered as he settled on top of me. Up close, he looked much larger. His long tail curled around behind him and hung off the side of the platform. My eyes danced about, desperately looking for any sign of Kaiten. I needed him here, now! I had no hope of winning otherwise.

Damien lashed out with a clawed hand. He caught part of my arm and most of my chest, giving me a deep scratch on both. My armor had lost more paint than layers, but my arm started bleeding profusely enough that I knew an artery had been cut. I had to get a potion, and fast!

"There's nothing you can do against me!" Damien gloated. "And where's your guardian angel, Kaiten? Why isn't he here?"

"There's a jungle of crystals, dumbass," I reminded. "He's just having a hard time finding us."

My remark earned me a swift punch to the gut. It rang through the armor and the wind was knocked out of me again. I drew what little breath I could, but it didn't do me much good. I was effectively paralyzed from the shock.

"I'm not going to waste time," Damien said. He grabbed me by the throat and started strangling me and pointed his claws at my heart. His hand alone was almost large enough to cover most of my torso. "I'll kill you before Kaiten has a chance to save you."

For a moment, I thought I was really going to die again. I probably wouldn't have another chance to come back, but I had dropped my short swords and didn't have a way to defend myself. I looked around for Kaiten, but didn't see any hint of him. What was taking him so long?

Suddenly, a blast overtook Damien and his grasp over me shuttered. I took the chance and rolled free to the side. With a quick jump, I regained my footing and backed up to my fallen weapons. I picked them up just in time to see another barrage rock Damien's body. I recognized those spells…

First, came a Shock, zapping Damien on the back between his wings. I could see his body outlined by the contrasting light. A Flare came next, matched by a Holy. I had to run to the far side of the platform to prevent myself from being caught up in the blast. The barrage was ended with a warm light washing over my body. Suddenly, my bruises and cuts vanished. It was impeccable timing, but it wasn't quite a miracle.

I looked up at the entrance to the room, where I had left the others. Steiner, Vivi, Eiko and Dagger were on the frontlines, casting magic, one right after the other. Zidane seemed to be giving the orders and Quina was moving in, charging up a spell as well.

I laughed. Those lovable bastards really couldn't mind their own business.

The attacks subsided when Damien grabbed a nearby crystal with his tail and used it to block the spells. Another Shock came in, as well as a Mantra Magic rolling in as a row of blue bolts. Damien was safe for now and glared at me with his same superiority complex.

"I told you, you needed help," he said. "It seems even your friends think you are weak."

A while ago, there was a time when I would have listened to him. He made me suspicious of the others, but that was, in a way, a lifetime ago.

"You're a fucking idiot if you think I'll believe that," I said. "They saw me in trouble and just jumped in to help."

"All the same, you cannot defeat me alone as you had hoped to do."

"You forget, I didn't come here alone."

That was when Kaiten made his strike.

He flew in, using the gravity of the place to his advantage. He bound in, landing against a crystal behind Damien and launched himself in faster than I thought he could propel himself. He had a pair of explosions on each sword and clapped them together at the last moment. His Whirlwind was an attack I hadn't seen since his first fight with Beatrix, but it was very effective against Damien's larger body. The force of the attack came unexpectedly and threw Damien to his knees. Kaiten's momentum didn't stop there though, and he ran a sword into the demon's back, running him to the ground.

I followed up on Kaiten's attack by launching my own. I powered up the innate powers within my blades and Azure began to cry. Water dripped like a thin stream. It seemed harmless, but I made sure not to get any of it on myself. I ran forward, past Damien's shoulders and onto his back just as Kaiten was pulling back, slashing at the monster's tail, trying to hack it off. I spun my sword around, splashing Damien's back in the flammable liquid. I held Crimson high, ready to strike and ignite the flames.

"NO!" Damien roared as he came to his senses. With a flick of his tail, he managed to land a hit on Kaiten and myself. We both went flying off, deeper into the crystal forest and further away from the others. I guess now their help was a one-time thing, unless they really came charging in to save us.

I landed with my back slamming into a broken chunk of crystal, providing both a wall and floor to rest on. Kaiten landed a few feet away from me and we both struggled to recover our breath.

"Well, this is fun," I said. "So nice of you to join me."

"You try navigating this place," he quipped. "There have to be a thousand crystals here. I think he's been adding to it as we've been fighting."

"That just means we have to be more aware. Any ideas?"

"That depends. You think you can dodge that tail of his?"

"Well enough. Why? Do you have something?"

"Maybe. We can try to outflank him. I tried my best, but there's no way we're cutting that tail loose unless we can sever it at the lower back. I say we target wings, then tail, then him once he's weakened."

I picked myself up and brushed several rice-sized crystals off of my armor. "You go high, I go low?"

"You got it. Ready?"

"To battle a huge demon powered by the evil voice that used to live in my head while fighting in mixed reality which may or may not be at the planet's core? Nope. Let's do it!"

"Very well then."

Kaiten and I both took running starts and leapt our way across more floating crystals. We could see Damien waiting for us just up ahead, plowing through crystals and smashing them to pieces. If he was coming for us, it would make our move even easier. Kaiten and I nodded at each other at the slight change and I slowed down my charge, letting Kaiten take point.

Damien instantly watched Kaiten as the Terran jumped higher locking gazes with him. I had to take my attention off of them, trusting Kaiten to fulfill his part of the plan. Meanwhile, I slipped beneath a low crystal and got out of sight. Damien never saw me jumping underneath. His tail flicked around, knocking into crystals and batting them away unconsciously, but it wouldn't be hard for me to sneak around it.

Kaiten was doing an impressive job dodging Damien's attacks, lobbing the occasional Arc his way. It didn't see to do much damage, but I chuckled to myself, knowing that the plan would do tons of damage. I charged Crimson up again, ready to unleash its magic again. If I was quick, I could probably take Damien's wings and tail in one fast assault.

I started my climb, jumping up crystals silently. Kaiten was still keeping Damien at bay, but the demon had to suspect something was up. Kaiten couldn't keep the monster distracted for much longer, so I had to make this fast. When I was at the right altitude, I rushed in, keeping Crimson aloft.

I neared my target, counting the feet as I closed the distance. I made sure not to make a sound and even held my breath, but when Damien turned at looked right at me out of the corner of his eye, my blood froze. I had no way to stop in mid-free fall, and no way to avoid Damien's counter. He swung the back of his hand around, punching me in the side and throwing me far off target. I crashed into one crystal and fell a good twenty feet onto another platform.

It seemed like I had crashed into more walls during this fight than I had in almost any other fight. Damien was beating me around just like he had in our last fight. At least this time, he didn't have his own reality to bend. Unfortunately, reality here was already pretty bent to his advantage. I wasn't going to last long if this kept up.

I looked up and saw Kaiten struggling to land a single blow against Damien. The demon was dodging faster than I thought he could move. Even in the bulkier frame, he danced about like a drunken kung fu master. He turned the tides and landed a few hits as well. Kaiten's nice new armor was already covered in scratches and dents. Was he already done for?

I had to call the others. They were the only way we could win now. More to the point, they were the only way we could survive. I had gotten in over my head and underestimated Damien again. We weren't going to kill him at this rate. He was going to kill us, and he was going to make it look like a game. I started looking around, trying to find which way was up. I had to get to the others before it was too late.

"Trevor!" Kaiten shouted as he took another hit. "Don't back down! We can still win this!"

"You've already lost!" Damien cackled. "If it takes your deaths to realize that fact, then so be it!"

"He's lying! Don't let him get to you! Keep fighting!"

"You will die! Your friends will die! And damned if I care, but the rest of the world will die!"

Kaiten was now on full defensive, but he was still able to look down at me. His face was a mix of fierce determination and silent pleading. "Trevor!" he called. "I need you! Help me!"

That was it. That was all I could stand. I wasn't going to let Damien stop us here, when we were so close to the end! Not after I finally regained most of my friends' trust! Not after I came back from the dead! Most of all, I wasn't going to let him hurt my closest friend!

I felt a power surging within my chest. It was anger, pure and burning, but it was different from before. This time, it didn't leave a hole within me, but it filled me, built upon what I already had. I was furious, but more importantly, I was in control. I had never truly been able to fight toe to toe against Damien, but there was one time when I came damn close…

I roared a battle cry as the sparks flew out of my chest, engulfing my entire body. White and green light mixed, covering me in a blinding light for a moment, only to brush away, revealing my trance form, glowing a sharp metallic green. Senses were heightened, reflexes were faster, and I could no longer feel any pain.

Good as I felt and strong as I was, I couldn't underestimate Damien. I had to strike fast and soon if we were going to win this. I jumped as high as I could, aiming for the nearest crystal. With my renewed strength, and perhaps the erratic gravity, I felt like I could jump as high as Freya. I overshot my target, but a new one came soon enough. Another crystal floated by behind Damien, out of his line of sight. A quick kick rebounded me towards my new target, just as he turned around.

Damien must have seen me Trance, or else he wasn't surprised by it. His only reaction was to flick his tail up to try to catch me off guard. His aim was true enough, but not his strength. In my rage, my Purple Magic came forth far easier. In less than half a second, I had a pair of Demon Sabers ready and met the tail in a cross. Not only did Damien's attack have no effect on me, it let me launch myself towards his back, just like I had aimed for from the start.

The Demon Sabers shrank and swelled at the end of my blades as they channeled a type of attack I had only used once before. "Rend and erupt in blinding fury!" I cried out. The magic in my swords launched out in short bolts. Arcs screamed through the air and sliced into Damien's back. Each hit earned a small blast against his beastly hide, as well as a cry of surprise, or pain. From behind, I couldn't tell which.

Finally, I closed in on his back, crossing my arms across my chest as my short swords capped off with Explosions.

"RADIANT BARRAGE!"

I brought the blades together at the last instant, scooping into Damien's back. Suddenly, having the larger body didn't seem like such an advantage as the blast overtook us all. He took the brunt of it while I was just left with sparks in my eyes. However, my body seemed to react automatically and Azure hooked in on Damien's back. That just left me an opportunity for another attack. Energy seeped into Crimson as I gave Damien my own devious grin.

"Burn, bitch!"

A swipe from Crimson into Damien's back made bleed, but it didn't sink deep. However, I only needed surface contact with his skin. The rest was already set as the sword's own magic worked. Fire blasted out at first contact of blade to skin, but soon, Damien's entire back was soaked in flames. The water I had spread there earlier was still there and made for an excellent attack.

My sudden sweep didn't last long at all though. In the half second I let my guard down, Damien curled his spiked tail up and wrapped it around my chest twice. The tail was thin, but surprisingly strong. My right arm was trapped and one of his spikes caught my armor at the left elbow, effectively pinning me. I could hear the scraping metal on metal as the spikes scratched my armor and crushed it. The armor bent inwards and wrinkled, adding to the constriction. Even with Trance aiding me, I wasn't strong enough to pull free. My advantage was lost almost as soon as I had gained it.

"I have many more advantages against you now," Damien gloated as he threw another coil around my legs. Soon, my pins and needles ran up my legs as the blood stopped flowing. "You should have surrendered when I would have made your death quick."

I struggled to even breathe and could only respond between gasps. "We both know… that's not… my style…"

Damien chuckled. "I suppose not. But you should have been more mindful of your surroundings."

"Could say… the same… to you…"

Damien was so confident in his victory, lavishing in his apparent win, that he never saw the red streak flying in from behind. It crashed into his back and landed a crushing blow. By the time Damien cried out in shock, his tail was already freefalling down through the crystals, with me still trapped within. Blood sprayed out, making him look like a blood-fueled rocket.

I pushed at the tail as I fell, but it didn't do much good. I was careening for another crystal. Expecting impact, I clenched my eyes and teeth. I held my breath, but instead of a sudden stop, I felt the tail unravel from my body as someone caught me. I opened my eyes to the red streak, glowing, just like I was.

"Took you long enough," I told Kaiten as he set me on my feet at the nearest crystal. My breastplate was crushed and I had no choice but to remove it, letting it drop where we rested. I had that less defense, but at least I could breathe now. "So you decided to Trance too?"

"Don't think I was gonna," he admitted. "I was way too tired from keeping him occupied, one on one. But I saw him grab you when I started falling and I guess I just… snapped. But that barrage you did really loosened him up."

"Well, I owe you for that."

Up above, Damien was just overcoming his wounds. He had stopped bleeding and had sealed his wound, but his tail was still gone. He was that much weaker, which was exactly what we needed. And with the two of us Trancing, at the same time, Damien had that much more to worry about. We had never Tranced together at once, not even when we fought him the first time.

"How do we do this?" I asked. "Any preferences?"

"Simultaneous attacks from the sides, front, back, top and bottom," Kaiten suggested. "We hit him hard and rapidly. Keep him guessing."

"You know, every single thing we throw at him doesn't work the first time. Our Trancing was a fluke. We got lucky. You remember how hard it was to even hit him in the subconscious."

"But we did hit him from time to time. We surprised him. He may be stronger and faster, but he still has to think and react like we do. He's still basically a human."

"So, we surprise him more?"

Kaiten smiled. "There's one other big disadvantage he has. Listen, I have a plan…"

Up above, Damien cast another Curaga on himself. The pain was gone, but to his dismay, his tail was still a charred stump where Kaiten had lopped it off. He growled in anger, upset that he had left his back exposed not once, but twice. He wouldn't make the same mistake as he flapped his wings, keeping a wide berth from the both of us. He held himself steady as Kaiten leapt up the crystals to meet him.

"You fuckwits are going to pay for that," he snarled. "I'm going to twist your limbs apart like the mongrels you are!"

"You hear that Kaiten?" I said in a mocking tone. "He thinks we're mongrels. Mongrels snuck up on him!"

"Snuck up on him?" Kaiten taunted in rare form. "But, how can that be? He's Damien! Mighty bat-winged hunter! Lord of this whole entire room!"

If leather could blush, Damien was putting that to the test now. His rage pushed its bounds as we dropped our guards just in front of him. He was humiliated and it showed. "I will fucking kill you both!"

"Oh yes, you will," I said. "Just like how you killed…uh…wait a minute, I can get this… Who was it again?"

"No one?" Kaiten offered. "Ever?"

"Yes, that's it! No one! You've never killed a single person!"

"You two are a good place to start," Damien threatened.

"You would think that, except your track record is shit," I said. "We're both very much alive, and you couldn't even keep Kaiten down in the subconscious realm."

"I'm just glad Trevor came for me when he did," Kaiten said. "I was likely to die of boredom the way you were going about it."

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Damien shouted. He summoned three Meteors above him all at once. "I will kill you, then all your friends! Then Kuja, and whoever the fuck I feel like after that! ALL WILL KNOW MY RAGE!"

The Meteors came crashing down at us. We both ran two directions, barely avoiding the attack as out platform was smashed into dust. I lost track of Kaiten as his red streak faded behind the dust cloud, but it didn't matter. Our plan was on track.

As I expected, Damien focused on me first as I jumped out of the cloud. I powered up my Demon Sabers and met his attack as his claws grabbed for me. His forearms glowed purple, just like my blades. Deathguise never had that attack, but then it hit me. Damien must have brought his own attacks over when his soul invaded Deathguise's body. Suddenly, his ability to keep Kaiten at bay made much more sense. My blades cold parry, but they couldn't cut through Damien's glowing skin.

"Why do you call yourself Damien anyway?" I asked as we battled. "Do you think you're the Antichrist? Some dark destroyer meant to wipe out life?"

"I'll settle for destroying you!"

"So you're the poor, tortured kid that no one liked in school? The loner that's gonna shoot the place up someday?"

"You would know! You created me! We share the same fury!"

"I got over my problems! I stopped dwelling on them and moved on with my life! You need to get the fuck over yourself!"

"It's never that easy! Others make life a misery, so they need to pay! What would you say about your grandfather?!"

I just deflected his quip with one of my own. "So you're either lazy, or a coward!"

My attack hit home, both verbal and physical. Damien was distracted just long enough for my Demon Saber to pass through his defenses and slice into his shoulder. I cut a river of blood open across his chest. He clutched himself, trying to stem the flow.

Kaiten was right. Damien was human, especially when it came to emotions. Like me long ago, rage was my weakness. Get someone mad enough, and they get tunnel vision and make mistakes. For example, letting someone sneak up behind them for the third time that day.

While I kept Damien distracted, Kaiten had plenty of time to prepare a new attack. His blades glowed so brightly they seemed to evaporate behind a misty veil. He launched himself from a platform, giving me just enough time to leap up and avoid his assault.

"ARC STORM OMEGA!"

Suddenly, Kaiten unleashed a screaming ball of fury as hundreds of crescents broke free from swords that swung so fast I lost track of them. He seemed to let loose five blades with each swing. Almost every beam hit home and exploded on Damien's burned back. The demon howled in pain, flying away, but his wings earned more than their share of holes.

Damien was still able to fly after the assault, but just barely. He had significantly less control over himself and fluttered to a platform to rest on. He wouldn't get that chance.

"Don't give him a second to recover!" Kaiten yelled up at me.

"I'm already moving!" I shouted, keeping my Demon Sabers handy. "Try to keep up!"

I dashed through the crystal forest, fast as I could. If I didn't know any better, I would swear that I was flying. Damien wasn't far away, but he still had an assortment of tricks up his sleeve. I found that out the hard way when he cast a sudden Twister right in my face.

My momentum died in an instant. The winds took me up and turned me around. I lost track of where Kaiten and Damien were as the entire world began spinning around me. I tried to keep my short swords up defensively, but it was fruitless. Damien crashed into me, somehow flying through the winds, unafflicted from what I could tell.

Damien flew with me in his grasp, throwing me against a massive crystal pillar. He kept me pinned by holding onto my arms, preventing my short swords from moving. I was defenseless for the moment. However, we could still use this to our advantage.

"Any last words before I tear your arms off?" Damien asked.

"Yeah," I said. "You're ugly and you smell bad. KAITEN, NOW!" 

Fearing another attack from behind, Damien cast another Twister behind himself. However, the attack was never coming from behind. Damien looked up as several small flakes of crystals fell on him from above. He saw Kaiten just in time to take an Arc to the face. The blast rattled him, but he still didn't release his grip on me. It did, however, force him to lose control on the Twister spell, which dissipated in seconds.

Kaiten landed sword-point first onto Damien's shoulders and vaulted behind him, out of my line of sight, but this had all been part of Kaiten's plan. We had to act fast though. We probably had only a few seconds of Trance left. If we didn't land the final blow now, we wouldn't get another chance.

I channeled my remaining strength into my chest, trying to cycle it through my body as best as I could. "Hey Damien, you know what your biggest mistake was?" He only looked at me in anger. "We didn't know what you could do when you had your own body inside my head. Relying on Deathguise's body did you in."

"You wretched BASTARD!" he shouted. He pulled my arms out and tried twisting them apart, like he was giving the world's deadliest Indian burn. It was too late for him though, as the green from my Trance expanded and covered my body like an eggshell.

"Kaiten?!" I cried out.

"I'm here!" I heard him yell as a red glow emitted from behind the demon. "Do it!"

All my energy rushed out at once to add to the shield. I was barely hanging on myself and I struggled to stay conscious, but I had to keep going. This was everything, here and now!

"Embrace rage and make it holy!" I cried out. Light poured from my body and Damien roared in confusion. "CRESCENT EXPLOSION!" 

The shell that had covered my body shattered into thousands of blades, shooting out in all different directions. I had concentrated most of my energy towards Damien though, so he was hit with hundreds upon hundreds of blades, which cut deep into his hide. On the other side, Kaiten was making a similar attack. The idea of pouring our energy out like this had been his, and it worked brilliantly.

My Trance faded as the energy left me. There wasn't a spot on Damien's body that wasn't bleeding or covered in blood. He had gone from brown to red in a matter of seconds and the damaged showed in more than his wounds. His wings were shredded and his body plummeted. Kaiten and I landed on a nearby platform and watched him fall, the result of our teamwork. I took a deep breath in and couldn't help but give a little laugh of relief.

The celebration didn't last long though. Damien's body didn't fall for long before it erupted, bursting open in a huge explosion. Kaiten and I were swept up in the resulting shockwave and lost our footing as the platform capsized. Soon, all I saw was fire and spinning crystals all around me. I lost track of where I was, but I landed soon enough, falling onto another large crystal.

There was only the soft brush of the wind for a moment. Only my arms and torso were on the platform, I realized after a moment. My legs were hanging down at the platform's side. I pulled myself up, but after ejecting all my energy and getting caught in the blast, it was all I could do just to inch forward.

It felt like forever before my knees were finally safe and I collapsed. I tried to look around, but lifting my head was a serious chore.

"Kaiten?" I called out. I didn't know how far my voice traveled. "Hey… talk to me. Where are you?"

I had to look over at another platform not far from my own to see Kaiten laying facedown and limp. In his armor, I couldn't even see if he was still breathing. He didn't move at all.

"Kaiten?!" I shouted, louder this time. I tried to pull myself closer, but reminded myself that he was on a separate platform, and I couldn't even stand up. I didn't know how I would get to him, but he was floating away, further and further. I had to get to him somehow.

My path was blocked moments later though, when a pair of red, glowing legs stepped in front of me. I tried to crane my head up, but the person was too close and I couldn't see that high. Nevertheless, I didn't need to see him to know who he was or what he was doing.

"I might admit, I am impressed," Kuja said, hovering over me. He had an advantage we could never have in that he could fly. Even now, he floated over me, flaunting his superiority. "To take down Deathguise like that, even after I amplified him with that stolen personality. Or perhaps, that's what did him in. If I had left Deathguise as a raging beast, perhaps you wouldn't stand a chance."

I wanted nothing more than to rest. Sleeping for a few hours sounded wonderful, but adrenaline was pumping through every vein in my body and I could practically hear the alarms going off in my head. Kuja landed a soft kick to my shoulder. He turned me over onto my back, grinning wickedly down at me.

"Was this really the pair that Garland thought could kill me? You barely managed to kill an underling of mine. The old man was a fool. And now, you're going to ay for his mistakes. After I kill the others, the Crystal shall be destroyed, and no one will need to live without my wondrous existence!"

Kuja cackled as a spell charged in his hand. Purple and red light swirled together as I tried to guess what spell it was. I didn't have the energy to fight anymore though. Nothing I would do would help. I just shut my eyes, hoping that what I had done so far was enough. I had done my part in saving the world.

Darkness came over me. I could hear a high-pitched scream. It wasn't like the first time I died. This time, death seemed warmer, and I could still feel my body. I was confused though. Did Kuja's attack really take this long to hit? It wasn't until I heard the stampeding footsteps that I opened my eyes again and realized that the screaming I had heard wasn't a scream. It was a spell.

A wave of darkness had washed over the spot Kuja once floated in. It dissipated by the time I looked up, and I saw Amarant flexing his hands inside his gloves. He must have cast the darkness spell. I saw Dagger run to my side and start casting a healing spell. I could only hope someone was healing Kaiten as well. Zidane stepped by my side as the energy slowly returned to me. His voice was muffled, but I could tell by his tone that he was barking out orders for everyone.

"Trevor," he said, kneeling down. "You guys did great! Are you alright?"

"Mmfine," I slurred, too tired to for proper words. "Gimme aminute 'n ll'help."

"No, you've both done enough," Zidane said. "Stay here and rest. We'll take care of Kuja."

"No… You need help…"

"Trevor, you barely survived that last fight. Stay down. We'll get you when the fight is over."

Zidane didn't know. He didn't know that at the end of the fight, Kuja casts Ultima and kills everyone. I had to tell him, but I the battle had already started. Blasts, swords clashes and magic resounded just beyond the next row of crystals. I couldn't talk over it and Zidane wasn't going to wait for me to recover. Instead, Vivi came running back, stumbling and falling onto his stomach.

"Vivi?" I heard Zidane ask. "What's wrong? Where's Kuja?"

"All over the place!" Vivi shouted, more panicked than I had heard him in a while. "He cast a spell! There are more of him now! Zidane, there are five Kujas!"


	9. Separated at Last

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's notes: Sometimes, you really have to hate your job as an Emergency Response Officer. You really do. XP I tried my best with this chapter, and I think it's better than last month's, but I still didn't have enough time to write it as I would have liked. Hope it's up to snuff.

Chapter 9: Separated at last.

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The battle clashed all around me. Swords, spells and explosions erupted everywhere, and I could barely move. It was all I could do just to sit up, but Kaiten… He wasn't moving at all.

"Five Kujas?" Zidane asked, shocked as anyone could be. "Are you sure? He's never used a spell like that before!"

"He has… new powers… in Trance…" I muttered, falling to my side again. More than anything, I wanted to sleep, but I knew that would mean people would die. I had to use that to keep myself awake and moving.

"Did he ever have an ability like that in your world?" Zidane asked.

"No… nothing like that…" I wheezed. Talking was far more difficult than it should have been, but Dagger had already healed all my wounds. I could already see her working on healing Kaiten, but he still wasn't moving. I would have to check on him in a moment. "He must… have learned it… Don't know how though…"

Could my being here have affected the outcome? I had already changed various events, big and small, just by being around. While I didn't think Kuja learned a new spell just to deal with me, it seemed possible that I might have done something to interfere.

Zidane clearly didn't like the situation anymore than I did. He would have to kill the man who was, in some ways, his own brother. "I guess that just means we need to beat him fives times. It sounds like he's trying to separate us and kill us one at a time."

"Then we should stick together, right?" Vivi asked.

"Exactly. If we kill Kuja's copies one by one, then we'll have the upper hand. Dagger, are you done with Kaiten yet?"

Dagger wasn't able to carry Kaiten in his heavy armor, but she could at least flip him onto his back. I could see him breathing. "He's fine, from what I can tell. I just think he and Trevor are drained."

"We'll let them rest. I'll need you two with me to take down Kuja. Stay close and don't let him break us apart. Vivi, hit hard and suddenly. And try not to hit me. Dagger, just stay ready to heal anything. We might run into the others out there."

Lifting my shorts swords felt like lifting a truck, and what was left of my armor kept me rooted to the ground. "No, guys… wait," I tried to say. But my efforts to slow the others were useless. They ran off without me, jumping to new platforms and chasing after shadows. Maybe they would find Kuja and win. Maybe they would be cornered in this trap and die. Either way, I wasn't about to lay here and wait to see what happened.

Harnessing all my remaining strength, I gave a yell and pushed myself onto my stomach. I could barely hold on to my swords, so I had to leave them behind. I reached out as far as my arm would stretch and planted it in the ground. I pulled, hard as I could. I could feel the muscles strain and threaten to pop my arm out of its socket, but I pulled all the same. I could feel the armor grinding against the crystal floor, but it wasn't enough to stop me. I had to overcome it, even if it killed me.

After what felt like minutes, digging into the ground, I finally felt myself budge. It wasn't much, but I would take every inch I could gain. Reaching out with my other arm, I tried to repeat my success. Perhaps it was my sudden enthusiasm, but moving became easier. The more I moved, the faster I could do it, until I was pulling myself along a foot at a time. It felt like forever, but soon enough, I found myself underneath a floating crystal platform, hovering inches above me.

"Kaiten? Are you conscious?"

"I don't like that new technique Trevor," he called down weakly. "I really don't."

"God dammit," I muttered. "I thought you were dead!"

"Just tired. That blast took everything out of me."

I reached up to grab him, but my arm missed in a wide swing. "C'mon. We gotta get up. The others need us."

Kaiten was silent. I couldn't even hear him move.

"Kaiten… I said let's go!" I pushed myself up on my elbows and fell back onto my knees until I was sitting. I could see Kaiten now, and he looked as bad as he sounded. "Kaiten?"

"I can't do it Trevor," he said. "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to break my promise. I can't follow you into this next fight. I'll just hold you back and get us both killed."

I fell forward onto the crystal he rested on. "Bullshit! I'm not going without you!"

"You don't have a choice." Kaiten slowly reached into his armor. It looked like it took all the effort in the world, until his arm pulled back and he had a sparkling silver potion. It was one I was already familiar with.

"Is that an Elixir? Where did you get that?"

"Borrowed it from the kid before we fought Damien. Thought we might need it. Here, take it."

"What about you? You don't have a second one?"

"I did, but…" The hand holding the Elixir opened to reveal a few extra shards of glass and a streak of blood. The sight made my blood chill.

My mind was made up. "You take it! You're hurt worse than I am!"

"The Elixir soaked into my skin when the vial broke. I don't have an injury there, though I didn't get the full effect."

"But your blood—"

"—Was left over when the vial broke. I'm fine. I'm not going to die. Just take the damn Elixir!"

Hesitantly, I gripped the potion from Kaiten's weak hand. I felt bad for taking the whole thing for myself. I wouldn't even be alive if it weren't for him. It wasn't fair for me to take the whole thing! "What if we split it?"

"What if we what?"

"We'll split it. I'll drink half and let you have the rest."

"Trevor, you won't get the full effect that way. You need every advantage you can get, especially against Kuja. I have no fight left in me, so he'll ignore me. Knowing him, he'll probably want to keep me alive to see him kill the rest of you. See that he doesn't get that chance."

"But Kaiten—"

"But nothing! You're more than strong enough to do this! I've always known it, which is why I sided with you so quickly! Once we had that battle in your mind, I knew you had fantastic potential. You're almost as strong as I am. You would have made a hell of a Spectral Knight. Now go and prove it!"

I looked down at Kaiten, not with compassion or concern, but in anger. He didn't understand how bad I felt leaving him to die like that. However, I also knew he was right, which was why taking the Elixir from him didn't feel entirely like betrayal. I just had to tell myself that Kaiten was backing me all the way, even as I downed the entire potion.

The effects were immediate. Thanks to Dagger, most of my wounds were gone, but the Elixir finished the job, leaving my body unbruised and cut-free. The biggest effect came from the rush of energy, which hit me so hard that I just about collapsed from my muscles jolting. I felt better than I did, even when I got my new body. I stood, flexing my arms and legs, perhaps stronger than when I walked in to fight Damien.

I looked down at my savior and friend, who looked like he was nearly unconscious. "Kaiten? Are you gonna be alright?"

"I'll be fine," he said. "The princess healed me too. A little sleep and I'll be fine."

Our crystal platforms were on the very edge of the battlefield, and Kuja seemed intent on fighting closer to the center, near the Crystal itself. Kaiten would be safe for the most part, assuming a stray attack didn't rocket itself to him.

"Just stay down for now, ok?" I told him. "I'll finish this up and we'll go home together."

"Like I have a choice," he griped. "Just watch out for Ultima. If that hits us, we all die!"

"I'm well aware of that." I walked over, picking up Crimson and Azure. The Black Mages in the village crafted them for me. They asked me to use them to kill Kuja, to stop his evil plans. After I dropped them in the Iifa Tree, I thought I had failed them, but now I had a second chance. I was not going to lose this fight!

With five Kujas loose in an enormous arena and the party broken up, there was no way to know which way to go first. Crystal platforms floated by as the sounds of battle echoed in every direction. I couldn't even tell who was fighting from the sounds, but one of them sounded closer than the others, so it would have to do.

I jumped on platform after platform, headed to where I could hear steel striking crystal. There weren't explosions with each hit, so it couldn't have been Amarant, and I couldn't hear armor clanking, so it couldn't have been Steiner either. I climbed my way up the side of a steep crystal and saw Freya pouncing after Kuja in Trance, who flew effortlessly through the air, dodging each attack.

"Freya!" I called out. The crystals here were all aligned at an angle, facing slightly inwards. Freya with her strong legs could excel, but I would be in trouble. Still, I couldn't just leave her to fight Kuja alone.

Freya twisted in midair and landed with her clawed feet on the tip of a crystal. She gave me the shortest glance and went back to tracking her prey. "What are you doing here? I thought you were too exhausted to fight!"

"Change of plans," I said quickly. I hoisted myself over the edge of the crystal and kneeled. "Kuja split himself up, so we need to take down all of them."

"I gathered as much," Freya snapped. "I don't know how much good you'll be here though. This arena isn't suited for you. Get out and help someone else."

"It's not exactly easy to find anyone else. How about you can the attitude for once and we come up with a plan together?"

Kuja had spent his time hovering on the far side of the arena, as if allowing himself to remain blissfully unaware of us. However, he had his eyes on us both and watched carefully. "So now another player enters the stage? Wonderful! Now I can dispatch two of you together in harmony!"

"Theatre-loving cretin," Freya muttered under her breath. "Fine, you can help, but I don't know what you can do beyond distracting him."

Freya was probably right. I looked around and there wasn't much to this arena. Just the inwards crystals, but there was also a floating platform that revolved around us. It wasn't much, but possibilities played in my mind. The revolving platform was our wildcard…

"Freya, can you distract him? Do you have any wide-range explosive attacks?"

"Just one, but it should do the trick. What are you planning?"

"I'm gonna—"

"What are you scheming over there?" Kuja called out to us. He flew to the center of the arena and hovered as magic bolts sparked to life in his palms. "It isn't polite to upstage the other actors! Perhaps I should force you back!"

I didn't have time to reveal my plan as Kuja let loose a dozen bolts of energy straight at us. Freya leapt away and I had to fall backwards, ending up on the far side of the crystal platform. I slammed Azure into the side of the platform and dug its claws in. I came to a stop halfway down the crystal when the spell exploded on the other side of the platform, rocking the entire thing. I held on as best I could, but I had swung Azure in urgency and didn't have a solid grip. The attack was strong enough to knock me from my place and send me falling again.

As the world started to spin around me, I felt myself land hard on another floating crystal. To my delight, it was the same wildcard platform that I had spotted earlier. The blast had covered something of my escape, and if I laid low, I might be able to pass overhead without Kuja seeing me.

I clutched the edge of the platform as it passed slowly overhead. There was still smoke coming from the blast Kuja had launched. The crystal I had been sitting on was cracked and fragmented. Thank god I had dodged in time.

Below, Freya was jumping between attacks, trying to swing at Kuja as he flew away each and every time. Freya was hopelessly failing and there was little she could do considering Kuja had the range advantage. She could barely leap in time as Kuja destroyed each platform one at a time, chasing after her. If I didn't help her, she wasn't going to last, and we needed every one of our fighters.

As my platform flew higher, I stood and positioned myself, swords at the ready. Freya missed another swing of her polearm as Kuja danced about before sending another bolt of energy her way. I waited for the apex to pass and then stepped off, hurling down towards them both.

Demons Sabers sprouted from both short swords. I aimed for Kuja as he awaited Freya's next attack, hitting him when he was least prepared. Unfortunately, he was in excellent form and grabbed me out of the air by the collar. I was so shocked that I lost my grip on the energy and the Demon Sabers sizzled.

"It is not polite to interrupt others," Kuja said. Power swelled at his wrist and I could feel my neck singe. "Go sit down and be quiet."

The attack went off without interruption. Kuja's spell seared and blistered the skin at my neck as he launched me. I flew backwards through the air until I crashed into a mound of rubble. It did little to stop me, but it was better than a full impact on a solid platform.

I scrambled up some of the larger rocks to right myself up. As I looked around, I could tell that Kuja had sent me into one of the ruined crystals. The rubble wasn't enough to support me in the awkward gravity, so I flailed like a drowning fat man. It wasn't until I caught a larger stone that I was able to straighten up.

Kuja was aiming at me again. I didn't have the footing to dodge, so I powered up an Explosion to intercept. Perhaps I could lessen his damage without killing myself. Like I was ever that lucky. I just had to pray that I could still move after this.

The blast came sooner than I expected, but didn't land where I anticipated. Kuja was engulfed in flames as fireball after fireball hit him. I saw Freya standing on a platform with an ethereal dragon's head spitting fireballs at Kuja. Not all of them hit, but the ones that did looked like they really hurt. That must've been the technique Freya had mentioned earlier.

"Now it's getting interesting!" Kuja chuckled as the dragon faded. Freya jumped along the edge of the arena, prompting Kuja to launch several more energy bolts at her. More platforms were destroyed and by the time Freya scooped me up, over half of them had been demolished. Broken bits of crystal floated where the platforms had once been.

"Trevor? Can you move?" Freya asked, hiding us behind another platform.

"I… think…" My voice came out gravelly and it felt like I had skin flaking off from inside my throat.

"Don't talk," Freya warned. "Your neck has been badly damaged from that last attack. Can you still fight?"

The attack hadn't damaged my arms or legs. I couldn't give a hardy battle roar anymore, but I could still stab Kuja in the face. I just nodded to Freya.

"Good, because I might have a technique to kill him with, but I need him to stand still for it to work. With all the flying around he's been doing, there's no way I could catch him in it. Now, I can throw you at him, but you'll have to take it from there. Can you do it?"

I gave her my best "Are you crazy?" look, but either she never cared about my answer in the first place, or I had lost part of my face as well as my throat and couldn't convey facial expressions as well as I thought.

"Good," she said, holding her polearm out. "Now hold on."

What had started as a bad idea soon became worse. I held on to one end of the spear as best I could, as she twirled it around like a spaghetti fork. I could feel my stomach churn as she spun me faster and faster until she flicked the polearm as hard as she could towards what I could only assume was the center of the arena.

By the time I got my bearings and could tell what was going on, Kuja was already in my face. I reached out and grappled him, wrapping an arm around his shoulder. It was an awkward hold, but I was able to hang on well enough.

"What are you doing?" Kuja asked, bewildered that Freya had basically "Fighterdoken'd" me into him. I recovered as best I could, but in the sudden close proximity, didn't have a lot of room for error. Kuja tried to grab me and blast me away like he had before, but I was able to charge a sword faster than he could charge a spell. Every time he tried to attack, I swung an Explosion capped short sword at him. He would dodge by twisting around or trying to fly, but with my arm locked around him, it didn't do any good. We were locked in a bizarre stalemate of sorts, probing defenses and waiting for a real chance to strike.

"Enough of this!" Kuja declared. Since he couldn't shake me off, he tried using my grip to my disadvantage. He started spinning up, performing backflips with ease. I hung on as tight as I could, but the centrifugal force was too much to endure. My fingers twisted in his flaming red hair, but even that wasn't enough. My hand slid and I soon found myself falling up, out of control.

"Now I've got you!" I could feel a sudden heat coming from around me. My spinning slowed just enough to see Kuja channeling a spell in both hands. There was little hope in me dodging as small orbs danced around my body in a spell I recognized all too well.

"Flare Star!" Kuja yelled ecstatically.

Each orb shot out a ray of light which lanced through my body, piercing me with the most intense heat I had ever felt in my entire life. It was like my organs were getting sunburned. To my horror, the energy collected and condensed for a moment inside me, seconds before exploding. I couldn't scream if I wanted to, though I did cough out a healthy dose of smoke.

As I plummeted from the sky, I tried to take solace in knowing that all the good I had done in life up to this point wasn't for nothing. Immobile from sheer pain, I landed hard on an angled platform. The only reason I didn't slide off was because of a particularly sharp rock that dug into my back. By comparison, that pain was nothing, but I did worry about it puncturing a lung.

"You know, it's often difficult to separate bravery and stupidity," Kuja laughed as he hovered towards me. "I believe you suffer from both. This deserves a reward of sorts. For your bravery, I'll use my strongest attack to kill you quickly. For your stupidity, I'm going to start by casting it on your legs."

I couldn't speak, but I could still see. Even as Kuja rolled in his sadistic laughter, I could see the intricate rune sprawling on the air below him. It was large and took the shape of a dragon's skull, adorned with twin horns and draped with wings. It made the space between the remaining platforms look like a large summoning portal. Oh, this would be good…

Freya's Dragon's Crest was her strongest Dragon Knight's ability, and I couldn't think of a better chance to use it, and not just because I was about to die. The air itself seemed to erupt in a roar as an enormous maw broke through the run. A dragon made of fire and light came forth, lighting up the entire arena. The wide jaws took Kuja by surprise and clamped down on him as the energy of the attack condensed, much like the Flare Star had. With a burst of heat, the Dragon's Crest finished and dissipated. I saw Kuja's body crumble as the magic thinned, his body turning to ash as it fell from the air.

I could only watch in amazement as my platform rocked in the aftershock. I would have worried about sliding off in my state of injury, but Freya came to my rescue soon enough. She held my hand until the vibrations stopped and cast Reis' Wind twice on me, healing most of my wounds. I only had a few cuts and bruises left.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"I'm fine," I said, my throat healed enough to talk again. "Nice finish there."

"It was too easy," Freya said. "For all the trouble Kuja's given us, I'd have though he would have put up much more of a fight."

"Then perhaps, he was just a copy."

"Would that really make a difference? Kuja is just as dangerous no matter how you look at him."

"Yes, unless his copies don't have nearly as much power as he does. They would have weaker strength and attacks." Though after getting hit with a Flare Star, I wasn't sure how true that was.

"Perhaps," Freya contemplated. "But now we're a step closer to winning. How many copies did he split into anyway?"

"Five, and at least one's dead."

"Enough for the rest of us. We might be able to find another one or two before the fight ends."

I stood and cracked my neck. The loud pop and the sudden release just felt amazing after the battle. "Sounds good. Lead the way."

Freya turned her back on me and stepped towards another platform. This one was floating high above, out of reach for me to jump, even in the decreased gravity.

"Freya? Where are you going?"

"It would be best if we split up. I'll head this way, and you go that way."

I shouldn't have been surprised by Freya's attitude by this point, but I could almost feel my jaw hit the floor. "Are you shittin' me? You're going to play this bullshit again? I just ran in to save you, and you're going to back away again because you don't trust me. For gods' sake, what the hell to I have to do to prove I'm not a bad guy? I don't have a malicious motive! I just want to kill Kuja and save the world, EXACTLY LIKE YOU DO DAMMIT!"

Freya turned to face me again and stared at me harshly. I returned the gaze, but then she sighed. "Perhaps I earned that, after how I've treated you. And you did help me. I could not have won without you. But it's not distrust that suggests we part, but strategy. There are at least four more Kuja copies fighting that we have to stop. You and I know their limits, so we'll be able to counter and combat them properly. I would enjoy fighting alongside you again, but I'm faster and we need to find all of the copies as quickly as possible. I'll make my way this way, and you go that way. We'll fight our way inwards if we have to and regroup at the center. If the original Kuja is anywhere, I believe he would be there, guarding the Crystal."

Stunned was the least of how I felt. I listened to Freya's entire heartfelt confession and could tell she was being completely honest with me. For weeks, I felt uneasy with this woman. Could our differences finally be mending? "Freya…"

"We need to move quickly. Time is of the essence. Just…" Freya held out a hand and a calm gaze. "Take care of yourself Trevor."

I smiled at Freya, for the first time in I don't know how long. I took her hand with a firm grip and we shook. "You too Freya."

She didn't linger beyond that. When she took her hand away, she leapt as high as I'd ever seen her go, jumping to the next platform. With her gone, I was alone again. I let out a breath and crossed my arms.

"Alright then. Where to go next…"

I looked around as the distant sounds of battle resounded. I had lost them to my own sounds of battle, but they came in fine now. It was all just a matter of finding the nearest one now. Zidane, Dagger and Vivi were hopefully still together. That just left Eiko, Steiner, Amarant, and Quina. The others would likely be tracking their own Kujas, or maybe trying to find the others. I could only hope no one was seriously hurt.

Just then, a high-pitched scream resounded through the air. It was nearby and seemed to block out a close explosion. "Eiko?" I wondered, praying that I hadn't just heard a death shriek. I had found my next fight, and quickly ran along the platforms, swords already in my hands.

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I know, this chapter is much shorter than I like them to be. Work has been real hard lately and includes fun little security threats that demanded tons of mandatory overtime. Getting home in the wee hours of the morning gets real old real quick. XP And with added projects and other writing going on in the background now, I just don't have free time anymore. As such, I haven't been able to put nearly as much time or effort into Shattered Mind as it so rightly deserves, especially not with an end-boss battle. I'm sorry that things are working out like this guys, and I wanted this to be a longer epic, but it looks like I'm going to have to break the final fight(s) into multiple chapters.

Still, I promise to do my utmost to give you epic battles and badass characters until the story is finished. And I promise, I have a few special somethings lined up that you won't see coming, both in real life and in Shattered Mind. One thing I will tell you though is that one surprise includes launching my own website within the next few months as soon as my next book is published (should be at the beginning of next year). So, that's one of many things to look forward to.

Oh, and if you ever run into me on the street, please be better than my coworkers. Don't remind me that I look like I didn't get any sleep. XP


	10. Strange Teamwork

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's notes: Before Hikari No Aijou rightfully tells me not to, let me say this is not an apology, but rather an admission. My last fight scene was not what it could have been. As I've said, I've been busy doing craptons of overtime, but payroll keeps screwing up my pay and I'm still short a lot of money from them. So you know what? Fuck it. I'm done with overtime for the next while until they pay me what they owe me. Screw their "operational need", I'm tired of being ripped off and having my writing suffer for it. Now I can go back to writing like I used to, and with that, I can give you guys another badass action scene.

Let's see what a few nights listening to Pendulum does for me! XD

Chapter 10: Strange Teamwork.

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"Somebody help me!"

The shrill voice made itself clear, even among the distant explosions and crashing crystals. I could hear spells launching as I flew closer. Freya's healing spell really did me some good. I was moving faster than before. Or, perhaps I was feeling better about patching things up with her and that gave me more confidence. It would be nice to have her off my back after all this was over, but first we had to finish the fight and get out alive.

I came upon a platform, much larger than I had seen from any other so far. It must have been ripped out of the walls as one whole piece. It stood about half the size of a football field and littered with craters. Several smaller crystals had slammed into the field, digging deep and blocking my view of the entire platform. I could hear Eiko's voice, but where exactly was she?

"LOOK OUT!"

I turned just as the young girl jumped from a platform floating above me. Eiko crashed into my chest hard enough to knock the both of us to the ground. We rolled in one heap and landed against a vertical crystal. Eiko was dazed but I was just annoyed. I picked her up with one arm and righted myself up. She had fallen from a platform fifty feet above us. Even in the twisted gravity of this place, that was dangerous.

"What the hell Eiko?" I said, letting her down as she startled herself awake. "You could have been killed!"

Eiko wasted no time grabbing me by the wrist and dragging me back behind the crystal for cover. "Quick! Hide!"

She was panicked enough that I didn't question her. I ducked around the tall crystal and sat next to her. We lucked out because the second we were out of sight, Kuja flew in where Eiko had fallen from and hovered down to the edge of the platform behind us.

"Hmm… I thought I saw a little mouse come this way," Kuja chuckled as he made his way slowly towards us. "I wonder where she went?"

This wasn't good. I silently got to my feet and drew my weapons. Kuja no doubt knew Eiko was here, but perhaps I could get the drop on him. I tried to think of a way to rush out and use surprise to my advantage when I heard a whispered muttering at my feet. I looked down and saw a summoning circle forming around Eiko.

"What are you doing?" I whispered harshly.

"Saving us!" she hissed back as soon as she got the spell off.

The ground behind us shattered seconds later. I peered around the corner and saw the platform splinter as Fenrir, Hound of the Earth, broke free. With hair spiked and crackling with energy, the giant wolf charged straight for Kuja. Fenrir's maw widened as he aimed for Kuja's throat. Now was the perfect time for me to attack and assist the canine Eidolon.

However, Eiko had other ideas. "I've survived by summoning and running," she said. "Fenrir will buy us some time. Let's go!"

"Are you kidding?" I called back. "We're never gonna beat Kuja if we run. Stand and fight!"

"But we need to find the others! We don't stand a chance on our own!"

I didn't have time to explain that Freya and I were enough to defeat one of Kuja's clones. My window of opportunity was shrinking, and fast. I just grunted as I rounded the crystal. "Just use your white magic to keep me alive!"

I ran with short swords at the ready, but Kuja had already made short work of the wolf and now held the Eidolon by the throat. He didn't seem at all surprised when I ran in and he raised an arm at me. He charged a spell in his hand, and I recognized it as the same one he used to burn Terra. I slid to a halt and forced my short swords up defensively. I caught the spell just in time as it blast into my blades and shimmered away. Kuja tossed Fenrir aside like a worthless lump of granite and he moved in on me.

"It seems I've found someone else to toy with," Kuja mocked. "Tell me you're not going to run and hide like your friend."

I gave Eiko the briefest glance, trying not to betray her position to Kuja. She cowered in the shadow of the crystal and didn't dare budge. Her Eidolons were her strongest attacks and Kuja had thrashed Fenrir like he was a mere puppy. I couldn't blame Eiko for being afraid. How many times had Kuja tossed her summons aside like that?

"She's gone," I told the floating madman. "Now you're stuck with me. Sucks to be you, huh?"

"Hardly," Kuja sneered. "I'll dispatch you easily, then pursue the rest of the gnats. I seem to recall you barely winning against Deathguise, and that was with the other harvested soul. On your own, you're worthless."

"Don't talk about Kaiten like that," I threatened, extending both Demon Sabers to their maximum. I tripled my range, but Kuja ignored it and just kept picking at me.

"You're not even your own man! How can you be? Can you even call that your own body?"

My own body? My real body was sleeping in a coma on Earth. I had no idea how to get back to it, or if I even could at all, but right now, did that matter? I took a deep breath, in control of my emotions, and I cleared my mind. There was only Kuja before me, an enemy I had to kill. The one last obstacle before I could finally save the world.

I had to stay focused.

"We'll see how real I am," I said. "Bring it, bitch."

Kuja frowned at my dismissal and didn't say another word. Instead, he powered up a spell in each hand and hovered in place. He was waiting for my next move. He wouldn't wait long.

I made my rush, coming in with Crimson before me, and Azure low and to the side. Kuja wasn't at all threatened and launched another bolt at me. Crimson caught it and the two magics met with explosive result. The bolt was split in two by my Demon Saber, but it drained the magic from my sword temporarily. It didn't matter though, because by then, I was close enough for Azure to reach. I swung hard and fast, and the blade met with Kuja's outstretched hand. His spell easily canceled out my Demon Saber as well, dispelling the blade and diminishing my reach.

It would take a few seconds to regain my magic, but I still had my blades and was still charging. I aimed Crimson for Kuja's heart, but it seemed he had already anticipated that. His first hand had already recharged another, smaller bolt, and aimed it for me. I realized too late that I wouldn't be able to finish my attack or dodge the spell. My eyes grew wide as he let loose the blast as Crimson was inches from his chest. I was picked off of my feet and carried by the spell back the way I came until I crashed against a standing crystal.

"Foolish, but amusing," Kuja said as he hovered his way to me. I could already see another spell in his hand, ready to finish me off. "But before you go, there's something I need to take care of."

Instead of aiming at me, Kuja turned his magic across the platform, where Eiko was still hiding. The little girl gasped as the spell grew, much larger than it was before, until it swallowed Kuja's entire hand. Acting fast, I grabbed for a short sword and poured my magic into it. Kuja was still out of range, even with a Demon Saber, but I had to get to him before—

_Too late!_ I realized with a sudden sinking in my stomach. Kuja loosed the bolt at Eiko well before I got to him. I froze in shock, but there was nothing I could do. Eiko screamed and held her arms up defensively, like that would do anything. As soon as I noticed that Eiko had forgotten to put up any defensive spells, sealing her fate, I saw a green figure fall from the sky and crash into the bolt. He punched it, cracking the spell in half with a tremendous explosion. One half dissipated where he stood, but the other half flew off into the distance, crashing into a distant crystal and taking it out, burning it to ash.

"Didn't I say not to go far?" the man scolded. "Stupid brat."

"What is this?" Kuja demanded. "How many more of you are going to fall in like this?"

There was a loud crack of knuckles as the smoke cleared around Amarant. "I'm the only one you need to worry about. What kind of man chases a little girl like that?"

"H-Hey!" Eiko shouted. "I'm not little!"

Amarant just sighed. "I hate kids."

During the introduction, I was able to get back on my feet. "Amarant. Glad I'm not the only fighter here."

"Thought you were out of commission," Amarant called back. "You know there are five of these guys, right?"

"Four left," I said. "Freya and I killed one."

Amarant cracked his neck. "Too bad. I wanted to kill them all myself."

"I'd hate to disappoint you gentlemen," Kuja said. "But killing one of us just makes the others stronger. All that traded power is returned to the others. By wearing yourself out, you've just made your loss all but assured!"

"Oh, I dunno," I grinned. "I feel pretty good right now! How about you Amarant?"

"Better'n this asshole's gonna feel."

"Wonderful! I'll take his left side and you take his right?"

"Works for me. Just don't get hit."

But Kuja wasn't having any of our banter. "You're welcome to try, but you won't succeed!"

A sheen of light overtook Kuja for a moment, like a curtain. No doubt that was a protect spell. That would help him against our physical attacks, but I grinned at our particular preparation that Kuja didn't seem aware of. I had magic swords and everything Amarant touched exploded. A protect spell meant little.

"GO!" Amarant shouted, and we both broke into a run. Demon Sabers might have been dangerous to use with an ally in close quarters, so I capped each of my blades with an Explosion. It would be fun seeing Kuja dealing with blast after blast all around him.

We closed the distance quickly enough, but Kuja wasn't about to stand there and get wailed on. Amarant and I took our first swings, but Kuja deftly sidestepped them, hovering between us and flying away across the platform. It made sense. Why should he stay in range of us when he could use magic from a distance? Suddenly, my magic sword advantage seemed much less significant.

"As if I would be so foolish to take you both on in a frontal assault," Kuja mocked. His hand glowed red as he powered up another spell. "Killing you this way isn't as much fun, but it is efficient."

"Eiko! Get to cover!" Amarant shouted as he threw himself behind a crystal. I did the same with my own crystal, staying flexible and ready to move again should I need to.

It sounded like a truck backfiring when the Flare finally went off. It blasted the ground where we had been standing a few seconds ago as a wave of fire and light poured around us. The crystals we used for cover were the only things keeping us from being roasted alive.

The spell was over after a few seconds. The residual heat left the air feeling muggy, but I would take that over a direct hit any day.

"Amarant!" I called out. "Are you alright?!"

"I'm fine!" he shouted. "The brat too! She's here with me!"

"I am NOT a BRAT!" Eiko cried out.

"Then how about helping for a change?!"

But Kuja was not in the mood to allow us to rest. "I'm sure you would love a few minutes to recuperate," he said, still flying out of range. "But that is time I refuse to give. "Stay hidden if you like, but that will only lead to your downfall!"

I could hear something like a video game laser cannon charging up. A sharp blue light poured in from behind the crystals and I knew we were in trouble. The resonating sound pulsed through the air and only got closer. My eyes went wide as I saw a bright blue beam of energy streaking straight for Amarant and Eiko's crystal.

"MOVE!"

The spell was a Holy and quickly wrapped once around Amarant and Eiko's crystal, trapping them, before winding up and crashing down onto it.

"Guys!" I couldn't believe it. Rubble and crystal shards flew everywhere at once. I had to dodge the shrapnel behind my own crystal, but I didn't see any sign of the others. Could Kuja really have taken them out so easily? What chance did I have then?

The flying madman was already confident in his apparent victory. He cackled psychotically. It was all I could do to stay out of sight, hidden by the massive crystal obelisk. "It seems your friends weren't as strong as they presented. What about yourself, killer? Are you as strong as Garland thought? Can you take me down?"

As long as Kuja could fly, I was at a serious disadvantage. Kaiten was the one with all the ranged attacks, like his Arc Storm. All I had was my Demon Saber, and that only gave me about eight feet of range at best. I would need to trick him to the ground, or perhaps move on and hope I could find others. Vivi would be great to have at my side. Perhaps even Steiner, with his Shock ability.

The platform was hardly littered with crystals. Even so, Kuja didn't seem to know exactly where I was at the moment. Maybe I could make a break for it and fall off the platform without detection. As I was, a direct charge would be suicide.

"Are you going to keep hiding like a rat?" Kuja continued to taunt. I risked a look and saw him slowly hovering away in the wrong direction. "Very well then. I shall have to flush you out."

I thought I had done a decent job in hiding. Imagine my shock when a well of light and heat appeared not three feet away from me. I was kidding myself when I thought I could hide. Kuja knew where I was the entire time! Reacting on instinct, I dashed out from the crystal with only seconds to spare as the spell erupted, engulfing the spot I had been standing in light and heat. The pressure of the attack knocked me to my stomach as I ran, leaving me exposed and in the open. Kuja just smirked as he hovered well out of range.

"There you are," he said, drunk on his clear advantage. "How nice of you to join me."

I was caught between thinking about a winning strategy and the fear of dying again. Death had been quick and painless the first time. I doubted Kuja would be so kind.

"What's that?" Kuja joked. "Nothing to say in your final moments?"

Screw it. If I was going to die, I was going to die fighting. "Blow me, thong-boy."

There was nothing more to say. I kept short swords charged and my gaze focused. My best bet was to overcharge a single short sword and hope I could overcome the eight-foot limitation. Perhaps I could reach Kuja and take him by surprise before he could attack. It was a long shot, but I didn't have any others to use.

I ran forth as fast as I could, but my plan was doomed from the start. Kuja was a master-level mage and he already had a spell in hand. As I stepped, the air around me grew a faint red as another Flare was quickly prepared all around me. I tried my best to concentrate on hitting Kuja, but even as my Demon Saber extended towards him, the air heated so much that I found it hard to draw breath.

The spell finally unleashed its full fury all around me. I clenched my body, hoping the pain wouldn't send me into shock. However, I didn't feel anything. As I heard another blast go off nearby, I opened my eyes, only to see another flare igniting around Kuja, taking him by surprise. I was left unscathed, but why would Kuja attack himself like that?

Upon closer examination, I noticed a slight red glow around my body. It faded a moment later, but I recognized it at once. It was a reflect spell, just like the one we put on Kaiten in the fight against the Lich. But how did I get it? I couldn't cast white magic.

A cheerful chirp a few feet over gave me my answer. I saw a light-green creature, with the body of a fox, the tail of a squirrel, the pointy ears of a rabbit, and a sparkling red ruby on its forehead. "Carbuncle?" I asked. The Shield Eidolon chirped again before opening a hole behind itself and backflipped into it, sealing the hole up again.

"Trevor? Are you alright?" Eiko asked from across the platform.

"I'm good!" I called back, stepping back defensively. Kuja was already recovering and I didn't need another surprise from him. He just dusted some ashes from his now-crispy clothes and glared angrily at us.

"A clever dodge," he admitted. "But a dirty trick all the same. Let's see you do that again."

"Demi Shock!"

A dark globe formed over Kuja, encasing him within a black hole. The orb grew and shrank quickly, contracting into a singularity before erupting. The energy loosed itself in a bolt of electricity and divine power. Kuja's body reeled for a moment, recovering from the gravity magic that had come from nowhere.

"Trevor, run!" Amarant called. He scooped up Eiko and ran towards a cluster of crystals on a separate platform close by. I chased after them, grateful to be alive. We made it to the new cluster soon enough, with crystals piercing the large platform thickly enough to look like a dense forest. Moving between them was hard, but so would searching for us be.

"That was awesome!" I said as soon as we were safe. "Amarant, I didn't know you could use magic!" I had used Amarant so rarely in the game that seeing it again here came as a shocking reminder.

"I can," he said, sitting by a crystal. "I just don't have a lot of stamina for it."

This was exactly what we needed. Now we had another range advantage and wouldn't have to search for the others. I kneeled for the moment and took the chance to rest up.

"So, any ideas?" I asked the others.

"I'm running low on magic," Amarant said. "We should probably avoid relying on it."

"Seriously?" I asked. "So Eiko is the only one who can even reach Kuja now?"

"Hey, I'm not afraid to fight!" Eiko defended.

"Quiet!" Amarant hushed sharply. "Do you want Kuja to find us?"

"But…" Eiko took a second to adjust her volume. "But I'm not afraid! I was just on my own before, but I can summon my Eidolons again!"

"I'm not taking that chance. Just stay back and heal us when we call for it. Stay in cover and if it looks like Trevor and I are going down, get out of here and find the others."

"Hey! I'm not—"

"Enough!" I shouted to stop Eiko from yelling again. I spoke in a hushed tone as an idea came to mind. "Eiko, how quickly can you summon your Eidolons? And please stop yelling."

Eiko's cheeks puffed up as she glared at me angrily, but she at least did as I asked. "The summoning spells are different for each one, but the shortest is Carbuncle and the longest is Madeen."

"Could you switch between them quick if Kuja fights them off?"

"Maybe with half a minute and you guys keeping me covered."

"We can't wait that long," Amarant pointed out. "If we strike, we strike hard and fast."

"Agreed," I said. "Eiko, you'll have a chance for one, maybe two summons total, but no more. Amarant and I will have to take him from there."

"But he's flying!" Eiko pointed out. "How're you gonna get him down to the ground?"

"Leave that to me," Amarant said. He pulled a pinwheel out of a pocket full of them. Another facet of his character I had forgotten. I really needed to hang out with Amarant more. "It's been a while since I practiced, but my aim used to be quite sharp. If he has wings, I'll clip them."

"Good," I nodded. "I have a plan. It'll require us to have perfect reflexes, but it should take him down in one coordinated assault."

As I discussed the plan with the others, Kuja had recovered from our last bout and flew over our forest of crystals. He kept his distance, flying high and out of range of most attacks. He was cautious, but fortunately, my plan already prepared for that.

I stood at the end of the forest and silently glanced to Eiko, hiding just a few crystals away. She stared up at Kuja worriedly. Amarant was already in place deeper in the crystals. When Kuja looked to be in the right place, I gave Eiko a sharp whistle. She turned to me after a moment, still clearly worried, but she nodded all the same and brought her flute to her lips.

I held my breath as Kuja turned to the new sound. He floated slowly above us, scanning between each crystal in search of us. "I can hear mice scattering about," he taunted. "But I can't see them. Perhaps I should flood them out?"

I saw Kuja prepare another pair of Holy spells. If he directed those correctly, he could probably flush us out or kill us outright. The first part of the plan was risky. Eiko had to play her flute to distract Kuja, which put her and myself at risk. However, that distraction, in addition to our previous attack, kept him focused on us, and that would be his downfall.

As soon as Eiko finished her spell, she ducked behind another crystal, but not quickly enough to escape Kuja's gaze. He flew overhead, trapping her against a crystal with a spell in each hand and a menacing look.

"Seems I found one of the mice," he mocked. "And I know just how to get rid of her too!" He held a hand out as he prepared his Holy spell.

Fearful as she was, Eiko stood bravely and gave her command. Her whole body seemed to clench as she screamed, "CRASH INTO HIM AND EXPLODE!"

Kuja didn't know what to expect or who Eiko was talking to, until he felt the incredible heat rising against his back. He turned just in time to see the Phoenix's eyes meet his. The majestic bird brought its wings around Kuja and let loose a dangerous self-destruction. Fire wrapped around Kuja as the force of the spell flung him like a shot to the ground.

Now it was my turn.

Kuja was quickly falling from the sky, taking a while to recover from the blast. I broke from the crystal forest with Demon Sabers at the ready. I skidded to a halt seconds before Kuja was set to land. He obviously thought something was up and already had a spell charging in each hand. He brought them forward just as I swung my swords up. Magic met magic and one cancelled the other. I failed to cut through Kuja, but now he was without his weapons.

The resulting blast stopped Kuja's fall, and he quickly recovered. He pushed away from me and flew back into the sky. I fell onto my back, but Kuja and I locked eyes. I could tell he didn't know what we had planned, but he wouldn't find out by looking at me. Especially with the new attack coming from behind him again.

Amarant ran up a ramped crystal from the middle of the forest and caught Kuja unaware. The flying madman only had half a second to react before Amarant dug his Rune Claws into his back. With what little magic he had remaining, Amarant brought an arm back and energy coursed through his fist. His hand glowed a bright white light that seemed to push all the darkness around it away. Kuja saw the magic, but had no way to dodge or defend himself.

"NO MERCY!" Amarant yelled, as he thrust his hand into Kuja's back. The resulting blast overtook the thespian, worsening his wounds and shooting him forwards. Back towards me.

I stood ready on the ground, Demon Sabers charged and waiting to receive. I held them ready, one pointed at Kuja and one ready at my side. My entire body braced as Kuja slammed into the blade, the Demon Saber easily penetrating his stomach and shooting out through his back. I swung the second blade as hard as I could, cutting Kuja deep on the side and adding to the already mortal wound. His body rolled along the platform, already incredibly damaged. But this was Final Fantasy. We had to make sure he was down and couldn't use white magic to heal himself.

"Eiko!" I shouted into the crystal forest. "Do it now!"

I saw a dark purple glow from inside the crystals and got to cover inside the forest. Kuja came to a stop well outside the range of the final attack. He was barely moving, but was still alive. A white glow came from his hand, faint, but still present. If he healed himself, it was all over. We would not get a second chance.

"Eiko?"

"Done!"

Just as Kuja was about to cast his healing spell, he ground beneath him exploded. Rock and crystal erupted all around him, causing him to drop the spell. The shards all collapsed together, pulling Kuja in with it. Madeen appeared outside the forest, adorned in enormous bat wings and a lion's head and humanoid body. She brought Kuja and the crystals into a singularity, crushing them all under intense gravity. And then, it all blew up.

Madeen disappeared, allowing the crystal, now more powder than chunks, and Kuja's twisted and bloodied body fall. To add to our success, his head landed first, breaking his neck at an awkward angle.

We gathered ourselves together, ready just in case he survived the assault, but upon closer inspection of the body, to our great relief, Kuja was dead. His trance faded and his mangled body slowly dripped blood onto an orange crystal platform.

"That took long enough," Amarant said. "Three left?"

"What about the others?" Eiko asked. "Are they alright? Maybe they've been able to take the other copies down! We could be done!"

"Maybe," I said. "But let's not get ahead of ourselves. We should assume there are three left."

"Where do we go then?" Amarant asked. "This place is massive. Finding another Kuja, or any of the others, could take us hours! Especially if they're moving around too."

I looked around. There was only a bitter silence that met us. No nearby battles, no sounds of the others, not even the slightest flash of combat. However, an idea came to mind for a moment. "Then we go the one place we can bet Kuja is waiting for us."

Eiko cocked her head curiously. "Where's that?"

I pointed down, towards the gravitational center of the room. "Where this all started. We're going to the Crystal."

XXXXXXXX

Special treat for all my readers coming next month! I'll do my best to have an on-time chapter, and I hope to see you guys there!

-Krimson Rogue


	11. The End of the World

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author notes: Guys, remember when I said I would have a surprise ready for you by next month? Well, because HR has failed to give me that pay raise they promised after my 2-year mark, I had to lead a revolution against the evils of Upper Management! My comrades and I rode in upon the backs of warhorses, stained in the chaos of centuries of combat! The dogs of war nipped at our heals, forcing us onward as we stormed the building! With swords in hand and torches alight, we crashed through cubicles and bureaucrats alike! Desks were capsized! Interns were thrown out windows! It was madness! Anarchy! The bitter fight of the underpaid against the evils of stupid mismanagement! My best friend died in my arms, but we fought on, bravely in his honor! We…

Yeah, ok, I'm done with that joke now. Just consider the "HR Swashbuckling" story as my extra gift as we celebrate SHATTERED MIND'S 6TH ANNIVERSARY! XD

I wanted to thank all of you again for staying with Shattered Mind as long as you have. Thinking back, I don't think I really believed the story would get this far, complicated, or popular, but you guys have proven time and time again that I'm not completely incompetent! And for that, you have my thanks. XD

So, yeah, HR fucked up my pay again and that required me to take some action. They're still working on it, and I didn't have the time to finish my new project in time, but I do have something for you. Two things in fact. The first is a link to my Facebook now posted in my Fanfiction profile. One or two of you may have already found out who I am (No, my address isn't listed, so you can't get revenge for the cliffhangers), but I figured it would be a better way to keep up with my projects until my website is launched.

Speaking of website, I'll need some material to upload in order to keep it entertaining, so I've decided to ignore my friends' requests to keep my ugly mug off the internet and create a movie review show! Those of you familiar with the Nostalgia Critic might find it entertaining (yes, that means I'll be screaming at the camera a lot :P). The show will be centered around crappy movies based on good (and sometimes not so good) books. A youtube link will be posted on my profile as soon as apple stops dicking with me and I can get some editing done. :D Expect something out by next chapter, perhaps even with a blooper reel. XD

Chapter 11: The End of the World.

XXXXXXXX

It was quiet by the Crystal. The transparent stone turned slowly, patiently. The red and blue rings danced in sync around them, protecting the glistening stone Kuja could have destroyed at any time. And yet, where would the fun be in outright disintegrating it? With his "brother" Zidane running about, growing weaker with every combat, Kuja was assured a victory. Kuja laughed at his brilliance and power, but hid a twinge of regret that he could not have lived longer to relish in this new strength. He should have attempted to gain Trance sooner.

Kuja twirled about, dancing in flight. He recited a poem he once read in Lindblum, glorifying the wonders of battle.

"Hell grant soon we hear again the swords clash!  
>And the shrill neighs of destriers in battle rejoicing,<br>Spiked breast to spiked breast opposing!  
>Better one hour's stour than a year's peace<br>With fat boards, bawds, wine and frail music!  
>Bah! There's no wine like the blood's crimson!"<p>

Rocks and crystals floated about the area, giving Kuja the feeling he was in a closed room. However, he could still see about it, and knew he was not alone. He saw a figure dart back suddenly from behind him, but pretended not to see. It was about time he showed up, after all. Kuja grinned and turned his back to the figure. He continued to recite the poem, singing the words as they made him wont for bloodlust.

"And I love to see the sun rise blood-crimson.  
>And I watch his spears through the dark clash<br>And it fills all my heart with rejoicing  
>And pries wide my mouth with fast music<br>When I see him so scorn and defy peace,  
>His lone might 'gainst all darkness opposing."<p>

At the end of his stanza, the figure made his move, leaping over the edge of the crystal above. Kuja dodged it easily, turning to the figure with a simple Blizzaga in hand. A massive ice spike grew suddenly where the figure landed, but it wasn't quick enough and the blonde thief rolled to the side, avoiding injury.

"And let the music of the swords make them crimson!" Kuja grinned as he finished the poem. "Hell grant soon we hear again the swords clash! Hell blot black for always the thought 'Peace'!"

"Kuja!" Zidane said, rising to his feet. "You've gone way too far!"

"Have you no pride brother? Surely, even someone as weak-minded as you can see the glory in this battle!"

"What glory?! You're trying to kill everyone on Gaia! You're so insane you can't even see it!"

"I disagree. Now with ultimate power, I can see more clearly than ever before! I ask you, what is the purpose of life? Of death? Why should one life die when thousands of others get to continue breathing?"

The question stunned Zidane for a moment, but he saw through the deception soon enough. "Stop pretending that this has some deeper meaning! You're just selfish! You're afraid of death, so you want to take everyone to Hell with you!"

Zidane's answer hit closer to home than Kuja had expected. Perhaps he had underestimated Zidane, or perhaps the thief had grown as a man in these past few months. Kuja frowned, no longer entertained by mentally outplaying Zidane. "Perhaps philosophy is too much to ask for now. I shall finish you quickly, then destroy the Crystal before your friends can stop me. Don't worry, I believe it shall be a quick death for everyone."

"Don't count on it," Zidane said.

It was only then Kuja noticed the heat on the floor. He looked down and saw a red rune carving itself on the ground at surprising speed. Kuja had just enough time to fly aside as a Firaga burst forth, swallowing one quarter of the room. At the end of his dodge, Kuja saw Zidane rush at him with his new blades, The Tower. With superior speed, Kuja caught his brother's wrists and chuckled.

"And let the music of the swords make them crimson," he repeated as his hands glowed red.

XXXXXXXX

"I still don't know why we can't fly in with Phoenix!" Eiko whined.

"Because you need to conserve your strength," I explained, jumping to another platform. "How many times have you summoned since we got here? A dozen?"

The bashful Eiko suddenly realized her mistake and didn't answer me.

"That's what I thought," I said. "Kuja gets stronger every time we kill one of his copies. We're going to need everything, and probably everybody, in order to kill the original."

"But do we really stand a chance?" Eiko asked. "I mean, we barely killed the last Kuja! What if we don't come out of this alive?"

"That's what we came here to risk," I pointed out. "Yeah, we could die, but if we save the planet doing so, then we win."

"But we'll be dead!"

"No one else will though! That's the point!"

Eiko just walked along in silence. She seemed to understand the weight of what we had to do, but it didn't assure her very much. I felt a bit of pity for her though. She hadn't even seen a whole decade yet and she was already being asked to risk everything for the entire planet. It wasn't fair for her, but her power was incredible and we needed it.

"Eiko," I said, stopping her in her tracks.

"Yeah?"

"When the fighting starts, just stay in the back. Work on defensive spells and healing everyone else. Stay hidden if you can. Kuja won't likely target you that way."

Eiko looked up at me with fearful, but determined eyes. Damn if she wasn't brave. "Alright," she nodded.

"Besides, if we can find the others, then this should be pretty easy."

"You think so?" Amarant said gruffly.

"Why? You don't?"

"I'm hopin' not. I need a good brawl and last fight was just a warm up!"

"Are you insane? We all nearly got killed! Are you saying you won't be satisfied until you're laying bleeding on the ground?"

Amarant cracked his knuckles and laughed. "Nothing gets the blood pumping like an all-out fight. Don't tell me you're not looking for the same! I've seen how excited you get in a fight."

"No, I want an easy fight," I explained. "That way we can win, save the world, go home as heroes, then I can go out and get laid." I was still a guy after all. I had my priorities.

Eiko tilted her head at my, but Amarant stared straight through me before bursting out laughing. "You're all right punk."

"Glad I have your approval."

"What's 'laid'?" Eiko asked. "Is that like laying down?"

"Uh…" I hesitated. Amarant just laughed at my expense and ran on ahead. "Ask Zidane when you're older," I said. "Like, ten years older." I guess I really was going to that special circle in hell.

Traveling in here also gave me a real appreciation for how vast this place was. I couldn't even tell how far away the walls were, but my bet was that both the Titanic and the Starship Enterprise could get lost in here. The closer we got to the center of the massive room, the denser the crystals got. It eventually became a challenge to keep moving just in trying to find a way through the floating, twisting rocks.

After several minutes, we finally forced our way through the crystals, using a combination of Amarant's new gauntlets and my Demon Sabers. Sounds of combat resounded once more until we came to a sort of alcove. Rocks closed in around an area the size of a basketball court, circling around a stalagmite holding the Crystal on top of itself. I thought the room looked like a giant bundt cake pan. And there in the middle was Zidane and Kuja duking it out.

"Zidane!" Eiko cried out in anxiety.

"Eiko? Trevor?"

Just below us on another ledge, Dagger looked up at us while Vivi watched the fight unfold. A flash of light burst from Dagger's staff. The light transferred to Zidane, who seemed reinvigorated in his fight. Vivi also concentrated on the fight, but didn't cast any magic. In the close quarters, it would be a real challenge hitting Kuja without hurting Zidane too.

"Guys! You're alive!" Eiko called out as she jumped down to greet them.

"Amarant, let's regroup," I said, leaping down as well.

However, the willful bandit had a plan of his own. "Are you kidding?" he said. Just as I landed on the second ledge, he took a running leap towards the battling brothers. He charged fist first and stood beside Zidane. Kuja hovered slightly, casting the occasional spell, but in the tight space created by the Crystal's gravity well, they were not the large-scale devastation spells his clones had been using on us thus far.

"How long have they been fighting?" I asked as I ran beside Dagger.

"Already a few minutes," Dagger said. "Zidane's doing well, but if it weren't for my white magic, he would have been killed already. Eiko, help me cast!"

"What if we attacked instead?" Eiko said. "That's what you said to do last time Trevor. I'll just get Madeen and—"

"No, don't!" I said sharply. "Not this close to the Crystal! We don't know how fragile it is! We need to avoid large-scale attacks just in case it shatters like glass!"

I silently hoped that Amarant knew to take it easy. He said his magic was almost completely drained, so we probably didn't have to worry about him using his No Mercy again. I'd be pissed if one of us inadvertently destroyed the Crystal instead of Kuja. Then again, I probably wouldn't have time to complain much before the entire planet imploded, or something.

"We figured out that the original Kuja would fly to the Crystal after he copied himself," Dagger continued to explain. "The others all separated from us after the split, so we're probably as lost as you are on the situation."

"Not quite," I gloated quickly. "Two copies are dead, and last I saw her, Freya was alive. She said she was going to find someone else and meet up when she could." How long had it been since I saw her last? Half an hour? Less? More? How long had we even been in here? We could be the only survivors to Kuja's horrors and not even know it. Suddenly, all my gaming knowledge seemed like a hindrance.

"If this really is the original," Dagger said, "then maybe killing him will also kill the other two Kujas."

"We can hope," I said.

Zidane and Amarant fought with noble intent and feral intensity. Kuja had stopped casting spells and was now purely on defense. In the close quarters combat, Kuja wasn't able to fly far enough to avoid attacks from the two of them. He darted fast enough to dodge most attacks, but only barely. The occasional blade still landed, but the blood was lost among Kuja's red Trance. If he was wearing down from battle, he didn't show it.

"I think it's time I found a new dance partner," Kuja jested. In the time he stopped casting spells, Kuja had actually been preparing stronger spells. The first spell washed a white light over himself. Several panels of white light surrounded Kuja and faded. It was Shell, but that spell was for defending against magical attacks. Why would Kuja need that when he was fighting…

Running to the end of the ledge, I cried out, "Zidane! Amarant! Get out of there!"

But I was too late. Kuja was already casting the next spell. An orb appeared in his hand, dark blue with a glowing red core. Power seemed to drip off of his hand as he held the spell, ready to launch. Zidane and Amarant seemed to notice just how strong the spell must have been, because they twisted their bodies and started to bolt the other way. They didn't go far when the spell erupted, overtaking the middle of the room.

"Flare Star!"

Six large red orbs appeared on the edges of the room, each large enough that Vivi could hide inside one. They all shot out a beam up and around the room, which soon found its way to the center. When all the beams met, they collapsed into a singularity and shortly exploded in a brilliant flash that could only be matched by the death of a star. The enclosed room became an oven as heat and light touched every nook and corner around us. Even we outside the center arena were hurt by the blast.

When the blinding light finally cleared, everything in the center of the room had been scorched black. The only things that weren't were Kuja and the Crystal. It seemed the spinning rock was tougher than I thought. That much was good. At least collateral damage didn't seem to hurt it much.

"A wonderful spell, wouldn't you say?" Kuja said, casting a heal upon himself. Even he hadn't escaped unscathed.

"Zidane!" Dagger cried out. I heard more than concern for a friend in her voice as the thief was thrown into the far reaches of the room. Amarant bounced twice before he settled in a crop of crystals sticking out of the wall.

Our front line was gone. With only Dagger, Eiko and Vivi left, I was the only melee fighter around to defend them. I took a long, deep breath as I stepped forward. My pulse quickened and my muscles shook so hard that my short swords threatened to fall out of my hands. I stepped forward all the same.

"Are you next?" Kuja asked, unintimidated by me. "The failed experiment is here to stop me?"

"Hey, I came back from the dead!" I pointed out, trying to calm my nerves. "And I already killed two of your copies! You're just a speed bump at this point!"

Kuja tilted his head at me, as if he were trying to figure out what I meant by speed bump. "You overlook the spell's true depth! With each double you destroy, their magical energy returns to me! Killing one tires you out while strengthening me! This has been an uphill battle from the start!"

I took another breath to steady my speeding heart. "I've killed you twice today. I can try for one or two more times."

"You'll have one less to worry about!"

Both Kuja and I turned our heads up at the new voice, and I gave a wide grin of relief as Steiner walked into the room. His armor was spotted with blood, but he stood tall and strong, so I doubted it was his.

"Steiner!" I cried out. I could hear Dagger cheer for her knight from the ledge behind.

"One more of Kuja's monsters lays dead," Steiner explained. "He was formidable, but with Freya's assistance, he was soon vanquished against our magic!"

"Freya found you?" I asked. "Is she here too?"

Steiner shook his head. "No, but she asked me to give her regards." He glanced over to Kuja, with anger building in his eyes. "To both of you."

Kuja smirked at this new development, but for the first time, didn't say anything. Instead, he raised his hand up and released the spells he had been saving for me, aiming them at the shining knight. I saw the crystals Steiner had been standing on explode. I worried for the knight until I saw him burst through the flames, sword drawn, and charging down the sloping wall. He stumbled at the last moment, falling to a knee and quickly picking himself back up. I had a laugh at that, mostly because I was glad to see him, but also because he killed his chances at a dramatic entrance with the flubbed landed.

"Nice entrance," I joked. "You alright old man?"

"I'm not old!" Steiner defended. "I'm only 33!"

"Sure you are. Is that creaking I hear your armor or your joints?"

We both shared a laugh as our gazes locked onto our target. Kuja hovered only a few yards away. Steiner and I weren't exactly flanking, but we still had a chance to come at Kuja in a pincer assault.

"Trevor, I don't believe we've fought at each other's sides, just you and me, since the Wind Shrine," Steiner said. Steam, started to roll off his sword. "Will you join me now?"

I smiled. "Anytime Steiner." I spun my blades in my grip and tightened my fingers around them suddenly. Demon Sabers exploded out of each.

Kuja prepared another pair of spells for us, but Steiner and I broke into a dash at once. Steiner went first with a Climhazzard. He swung at Kuja, crashing his sword into the ground. Strings of fire erupted in a flurry of ribbons, but missed the mark as Kuja flew up above. However, I came in right behind the knight. Steiner knelt where he had attacked, making himself a springboard for me. I kicked my legs as hard as I could, launching myself after the flying madman. With my added range, Kuja narrowly escaped severing a limb. I swung hard with both blades, but Kuja flew away from me. I only nicked him twice on the same arm. He dripped trace amounts of blood as he retreated.

I landed hard on the crystal ground as Kuja flew around the room, but Steiner was already on it. He channeled his swords arts through his sword and a light blue glow surrounded the tip. I ducked to avoid getting in the way as Steiner took aim.

"Shock!" he called out.

Again, Kuja dodged, but barely. His hair was singed as the blast overtook the air. Several crystals were torn from the walls and the room grew a little. However, Kuja was ready for us and circled the room. I could already see his hands glowing purple as he flew in to attack.

"A cunning strategy," Kuja said. "But without strength, it means nothing!"

Kuja brought his point home when he landed a hit on my stomach and Steiner's breastplate. He loosed his spells, hitting us both with the some blasts he used to take down Terra and set it ablaze. Though we didn't catch fire, the spell was more than enough to force Steiner and me back out of the battlefield, crashing just under the ledge holding our three mages.

"All that effort and it's all for naught," Kuja taunted. "If the rest of you are willing to surrender, I'll make your deaths quick and painless. Well, for most of you anyway…"

But Kuja's "offer" was quickly ignored. From my resting spot, I saw two figures dart from over the ledge and race towards the madman. Amarant with his flowing red hair led the charge while Zidane flanked, with the Tower at his side.

"Head's up!" Amarant called out as he made the first strike.

Amarant's swing missed Kuja initially, but the blast created by his Rune Claw didn't. The shockwave beat Kuja back and left him disoriented for the half second that Zidane needed. The blond thief rushed in, practically dancing with his blades. Metal flashed high, low, and everywhere in between. Kuja avoided most of the attacks, but still suffered a barrage of cuts. He had been doing well enough, until Zidane brought his hands together, still holding the Tower in both of them, and thrust them forward.

"Thievery!" he cried out.

Suddenly, dark tendrils shot out of Zidane's fists. A small shockwave followed, forcing Kuja away and he crashed into the far wall. Amarant roared in momentary triumph and ran forward to finish the job, but Kuja was far from done.

Meanwhile, I was still recovering from getting tossed around like a salad. I was having trouble breathing and my left arm was so bruised that I couldn't even push myself up on it. I looked over to Steiner and he seemed to be having the same difficulty.

"You alright?" I called out, forcing myself to sit up.

"I think my wrist is broken," he said, holding his sword arm. His hand was bent back at an awkward angle, making him almost worthless for combat. It was a wonder in the man's stamina that he wasn't doubled over in agony.

Suddenly we heard, "Steiner! Trevor! Hold on!"

I looked up and saw both Dagger and Eiko standing on the ledge above us, casting their white magic. Within seconds, white energy surrounded both Steiner and myself. My bruises shrank and vanished, reducing the pain instantly. I could stand again and pushed myself up on my feet. I saw Steiner flex his wrist, testing the waters and nodding approvingly.

"Good to go?" I asked.

"As good as new," he said.

But as I looked back over the battlefield, I saw Kuja pulling himself out of a wall. Zidane and Amarant seemed ready to fight him again, but Kuja wasn't looking at them. He was looking in my direction, or rather, just above me, at Dagger and Eiko. He grinned for a moment and a sudden white glow surrounded him. I thought he was healing himself at first. I didn't realize I was wrong until I heard the loud pop.

A shockwave went off, pushing Zidane and Amarant away. They flew across the room bouncing once against the floor.

"Trevor!" Steiner called out. "We need to go!"

Seeing Zidane come to a rest was all I needed. Kuja was flying freely again and it was just Steiner and myself on the frontline. We ran out into the open again, just as Kuja readied himself. His hands glowed bright from another spell he powered up. Steiner and I made as strong a rush as we could, but just as we neared Kuja, he took off, flying around the curved ceiling.

Kuja was now well out of range of my attacks and Steiner's Thunder Slash missed by a wide margin. We only watched as Kuja reached the highest point in the room. Clutching both hands together, he looked down at his targets: our white mages and source of healing.

"Perhaps now, the rest of them will stop popping back up," Kuja taunted. "Goodnight 'Princess'."

Kuja's spell solidified behind him into a molten rock. The Meteor spell burned and flickered. Anything hit by that would be incinerated instantly. Steiner cried out for Dagger and ran forward, but there was no way he could possibly close the distance in time. I could only watch helplessly as the Meteor spell launched for the ledge.

"NOOO!"

The Meteor had only just launched itself before Vivi dashed in front of the girls. More than just a vain attempt to shield them with his body, Vivi channeled his own magic as quickly as he could. A small, but still powerful rock appeared above his staff. He didn't have time to grow it to the size that Kuja's was, but Vivi let loose his Meteor and intercepted the attacking magic.

The two spells met in the middle and collided, shooting rock and fire in every direction. A small shock rocked the room and everyone in it, but no one was more surprised than Kuja. The eruption of rock and heat blinded him for the moment, unaware that Vivi could even react that quickly. He was even more shocked when the other spells hit him from behind.

"1000 Needles!"

"Dragon's Breath!"

Kuja's body became a pincushion as green fire overtook him. The two foreign spells stuck and burned him, forcing Kuja to take shelter on the ground behind a hastily cast Shell, which barely managed to hold itself around him. He had to crouch down low as the last few needles fired.

Quina and Freya entered the room on the opposite side that I came in. They stood triumphantly, fresh from taking down the last of Kuja's clones. Now, Kuja was in the center of the room, with Dagger, Eiko and Vivi looking down at him from their ledge, Steiner and I across from them, Freya and Quina standing a ledge beside myself, and Zidane and Amarant now recovering. Kuja took a panoramic look around and realized the trouble he was now in.

"Kuja," Dagger said, taking charge. The royal upbringing was evident in her tone. "You've committed horrible crimes against my friends, my family, my country and my planet. You are easily the worst criminal in history. You are surrounded. It's time to give in and answer for your crimes."

Kuja stared at Dagger, first like she was insane. In his eyes, it was like a gnat commanding a king. The thought was preposterous. So much so that Kuja burst out laughing. "You'd call me a criminal?" he said, probably losing it. "The only crime would be letting this world live without me! Why should I die alone? I will not go alone!"

But Zidane had had enough. "You don't even care about labels and crimes! You're just a coward! You're afraid to die!"

"Look at me brother!" Kuja yelled. His voice cracked. His mask was falling and his fear became evident. "Look at me Zidane! I'm mortal! No longer the unstoppable Angel of Death I was supposed to be!"

Zidane hesitantly stepped forward to Kuja, carefully readying his weapon. He was the only one. "Kuja, if you're trying to get us to pity you, it's too late."

"Pity?! This has nothing to do with pity!" Kuja stood at last, revealing the dark glow around his hands. "This is about JUSTICE!"

All our eyes shot open and we snapped into action at once. Zidane shouted for us to, "STOP HIM!", but the spell was ready. Our team cast spells or rushed forward. I extended a single Demon Saber and let it lead the way.

But it didn't do us any good. We had only halved the distance when the enormous rock began to form above Kuja. It filled the room quickly and dark tendrils shot out, burning the crystals of the walls. The ceiling cracked as the rock formed upward, exploding and letting in the "sky" from outside. I watched in awe, transfixed on the spell and just skidded to a halt. It was too late already.

"DOOMSDAY!" Kuja cried out.

And the world exploded.

XXXXXXXX

The entire room had been shattered open. When I opened my eyes, there were barely any crystals left to make up what had once been an entire arena. The walls, ledges and even most of the floor were now missing. Pushing myself up, I saw that I was just on a small section of floor with a short wall behind me. I was floating free, but I could see the Crystal in the distance, still in tact. That was one tough little rock.

I stood up and looked around, carefully as a white-hot pain stabbed me in the stomach as my hip gave a sickening crack. I fell at once, screaming in torment as I could feel my femur fitting in at an unnatural angle at the joint. My leg now hung off my waist like it had been shoved in an extra few inches. Moving at all was excruciating. I had to find one of the girls. I just hoped everyone else was alive.

There were several remnants of the room nearby, filling out what the room had looked like a minute ago. Some of the other platforms were close by, and I would have been able to jump the distance if I could move without my body feeling like I was being stabbed with a poker. The best I could do now was crawl. I was stuck on my own little platform until someone came and rescued me. I didn't see anyone else, but at least I didn't see Kuja.

"Guys…" I called out, so weakly I wasn't sure I actually said anything at all.

"Guys," I said again, to reassure myself I could still talk.

"Guys!" I tried, louder and more clearly. I could hear my voice bounce back from one of the nearby walls.

I took a deep breath and prepared myself as best I could. "GUYS!"

The scream took everything out of me. I accidentally pushed myself up to get a better angle, but twisted my hip as I did so. I threw myself back down and screamed in agony, trying with all my might not to roll over and move my leg again. I felt like I screamed for hours.

In that time, as my screams died down to whimpers, I had time to wonder about the others. Were they even alive? Did the Doomsday kill them or did they fall to their deaths over the edges of these platforms? What would happen if someone did fall in this odd realm of twisted gravity? The more I questioned it, the more I calmed down, until I heard footsteps coming for me.

"Who's there?" I asked, craning my neck up.

I had really hoped Dagger was coming, or even Freya or Eiko. Any of them could heal me. Imagine my shock when I saw a red man shuffling his way to me.

"You're the first one," Kuja snarled. He was still in Trance, but he had lost his glow. He was still red, but now it was matched with several streaks of blood, coating his body in thin rivers. The cut on his forehead looked like the worst one, dripping down and soaking his eye.

Kuja repeated, "The first one I found…"

"You… you idiot…" I coughed. "You used Doomsday?"

"A very powerful spell, used only a handful of times in history," he said, stopping at my feet. His voice still had an air of superiority, but he had lost his patient tone. I had never seen Kuja as very frightening, given his attitude and his apparel, but now, I was genuinely worried about what he was going to do to me.

I tried to push myself away, backing away with my hands, but I ran into a wall as soon as I had started. I had nowhere to run, and with a broken hip and dislocated leg, I couldn't run even if I wanted to.

Kuja bent down and grabbed me by the neck. He was in much better shape than I was and was able to lift me by the neck, pinning me against the wall. I screamed as my leg bounced against the wall, and another jolt of icy-hot pain raced up my side.

"None of you were supposed to be this strong!" Kuja shouted. "How could some twisted, broken experiment like you get this far?"

I couldn't answer as Kuja pressed down on my throat. Being suffocated was distracting enough, but with the pain wracking my body from my hip, fighting back was next to impossible. I didn't even thrash my hands about to punch Kuja. They were busy keeping my leg supported away from the wall. Everything was already going dark, but I could still see a small glow of light coming from below. One of Kuja's hands glowed red as he powered another spell. This was it… again.

"KUJA!"

I could barely see through the pulsing blood vessels in my eyes, but it looked like Zidane was walking towards me. He only had a dagger in one hand, and his left shoulder seemed to sag unnaturally, possibly dislocated. He staggered towards us as fast as he could, shuffling on stiff legs.

"How are ANY of you alive?!" Kuja shouted. He turned his arm to Zidane, magic still in his grasp. I tried to swing at Kuja's arm to stop him, but every movement sent blinding pain through my body. I couldn't do anything as the Flare spell went off down the platform, consuming Zidane entirely.

"Zidane!" I gasped. Kuja still had a hand around my neck, so there was nothing I could do but hang in place.

As the air cleared, I saw Zidane's body tossed aside. He laid motionless at the edge of the platform, threatening to fall over the side. I didn't see anyone else around to save him and I certainly wasn't in any position to move.

"Sick… bastard…" was all I could say. It was all I could do really. Kuja threw a punch at me and hit me in the leg. The pain was so incredible I nearly blacked out. I screamed and screamed until my lungs burned and my voice went hoarse. Why didn't I borrow a few potions from the others after I got my new body? I'd do anything to reset my leg right now.

Suddenly, someone moved from the only remaining ledge nearby. "Trevor! Hold on!"

I looked up and saw Vivi channeling a spell. I tried to shout for him to move, but Kuja was faster. He held an arm out, charging a spell faster than Vivi could. Biting through the agonizing pain, I tried to grab Kuja's arm to misdirect him, but I was too weak. Kuja just tightened his grip around my trachea and I went limp. I could only watch as the ledge exploded, taking Vivi along with it. The whole cliff was gone when the Flare cleared.

I couldn't see Vivi anywhere.

_Stop it!_ I shouted in my mind. _Stop killing everyone!_

I tried to voice my fury, but I couldn't even breathe anymore. Kuja wrapped both hands around my neck again and I saw the red glow return to his hands. It was all I could do to even keep my eyes open. I was spent. Darkness crept into the corners of my eyes. I saw the glow of his magic, but second by second, it faded. My eyes started to roll into the back of my head as I awaited the inevitable.

In one last second, someone landed an unseen hit against Kuja. The strike took Kuja completely by surprise. It wasn't enough for him to let go, but he loosened his grip and dropped his next Flare. I took in a deep breath and looked around to see who had come to my rescue. After a few seconds, I only saw one person standing far away.

"Kaiten...?" I asked weakly.

I peered over Kuja's shoulder to see a man standing alone on a small platform in the distance. With my blurred vision I could barely see him, yet I knew it was him. He leaned on a sword half-buried in the crystal platform with his second sword hanging from his arm at his side. Kaiten had dragged himself into battle, against all odds.

"Relic..." Kuja grumbled. His hand glowed dark blue this time as he looked over his shoulder. Whether unconsciously or because of his blinding anger, Kuja's grip started to loosen around me. Kaiten was clearly in no shape to dodge whatever came his way. I needed to stop Kuja and save Kaiten. It was only then that I noticed that Azure was still in my sheath. My hand flapped down as I blindly searched for it.

"None of you will leave here alive!" Kuja shouted. He was losing his composure as quickly as he was losing his power. I saw the red tinge inside the blue glow on his hand just as I slapped against the pommel of my short sword and slid into the grip.

Kuja pulled his arm up and pointed it down range at Kaiten. I unsheathed the blade unnoticed but it was too late to stop the spell. Kuja sent his magic at Kaiten, and another Flare Star exploded. I lost Kaiten behind the field of blue and red. I thought I heard a scream, but I couldn't be sure behind the blast. All that mattered now was that I had a sword in my hand and room to move in.

"Worthless!" Kuja hissed. "I won't let any of you get in my way!"

Kuja's neck snapped back as I told him, "Tough shit. It's gonna happen anyway."

He looked down and saw Azure held against his gut, glowing a deep purple.

"Pulse."

A ring of slicing energy cut through the air and Kuja was forced to drop me and back away quickly. I landed on my feet at first and collapsed at once. Blinding pain shot up my leg and I screamed again, but I still saw Kuja as he hovered only a few feet away. He stared at me in rage, and it took all my concentration to bite through the pain and raise Azure again. I extended a short Demon Saber at him, but it was shaky and didn't last long. I couldn't maintain it, and the blade eventually shrank back down. I kept Azure up. It was all I could do. Even if Kuja killed me, I would go down resisting him.

"No more hesitation," Kuja said, cold as could be. "Your time is now."

Suddenly, Kuja lit up. Not from a magic spell he was casting, but because of a spell being cast on him. I shut my eyes to the light and felt the heat roll over me as a Flare overtook Kuja and blasted him even further away. When I opened my eyes again, I saw Vivi staring down at Kuja from the same ledge he had been on before. He was beaten and bruised, but valiant and steadfast.

Kuja was thrown over the platform and into the air. Only his flight kept him from falling into who knows where. He was dizzy and disoriented, and unprepared for what came next.

What looked like a scarlet slash came out of nowhere, followed by a light blue scar. "Lancer!" came the cry, and I knew Freya had jumped over the chasm below to land a blow on Kuja.

A pair of blue ribbons appeared in the air, above and below Kuja. I saw Dagger and Eiko on the same ledge as Vivi, guiding the Holy spells in, through and around him. Kuja tried to run, but whenever he ran from one beam, he ran into the other, until both beams connected through him and exploded in a flash of cerulean light.

Next, Amarant made his own attack. Kuja had been forced near another platform, where Amarant was more than glad to see him. The battle-crazed bandit took one enormous swing at the beleaguered Kuja, and the resulting explosion from his Rune Claws blasted Kuja away, towards another team member.

Quina held his arms out, fork in hand, ready to catch Kuja. Tired as he looked, he was sturdy and much heavier than the flying Terran. However, Kuja recovered at the last second, stopping his crash-course mere feet from Quina's weapon. However, that wasn't enough to save him from the Qu, and Quina already had his unique brand of blue magic ready. "Mantra Magic!" he cried out, as a hundred bolts of energy loosed from his body. Several missed, but plenty of them hit. Kuja's body was pummeled hard and furiously. He couldn't even put up a Shell from how violently his body was tossed around.

He finally came to a stop and landed in a heap on one platform. Kuja looked up in despair as he saw a man in armor, standing tall, with a sword raised above his head, quickly coming down with a touch of magic running through it.

"Climhazzard!" Steiner cried out. The fiery burst burned Kuja and now he was more red from blood than he was from his Trance. Flecks of skin hung off from him, and it looked like it took all of Kuja's energy just to stand up.

"It's over Kuja."

Kuja raised his head to look up at his brother, standing victorious above him. Zidane had the Tower in hand again, but kept it at rest by his side. "We can end this all now," Zidane pleaded. "Please Kuja. I really don't want to kill you."

"No," Kuja groaned, coughing up a mouthful of blood. "No! I WON'T LET IT BE OVER!"

Kuja pulled his hand out, glowing white. Before Zidane could counter him, Kuja cast the Curaga on himself, not healing himself completely, but undoing a considerable amount of damage. His glow returned to him slightly and cast a Flare at Zidane, blasting him back and knocking him out of the way. Kuja pushed off from the floor and quickly took off in flight for the Crystal.

"KUJA! DON'T DO IT!" Zidane cried out. He took off after the weakened kamikaze Kuja as fast as he could, leaping from platform to platform. If he didn't stop Kuja now, then all of this could have been in vain. The emotions ran high within him, between saving the world, his friends, and having to kill his brother. As Zidane recovered from the Flare, sparks and light overcame his body, and he too achieved Trance. He glowed pink and took off like a lightning bolt after Kuja.

As Kuja flew, all our magic users united in one glorious stream of attacks. Kuja dodged Steiner's Shock and Quina's Aqua Breath, but Vivi's Meteor smashed him into the side of a nearby platform, halting him momentarily.

I felt a warm light wash over me, and there was a loud pop from my hip as my leg was readjusted into place. I looked up at Eiko looking down at me from the ledge and gave her a wave in thanks. I stood, with only a weak ache in my joints. It wasn't perfect, but I could run and fight again.

"Dagger!" Zidane shouted as he chased after the dazed Kuja. "Get everyone out of here!"

"But what about you?!" she cried back.

"DO IT!"

It was harsher than Zidane had ever talked to any of us before. My guess was that he wanted to fight Kuja alone, without anyone around. That way, he didn't have to hold back. That, or he didn't want anyone to witness this unhappy battle. I stood up and saw everyone starting to gather as Dagger tried to lead everyone back to where the entire room opened. Everyone but one.

"Guys, where's Kaiten?!" I shouted as I ran up.

He wasn't in the group. I looked frantically, but no one saw him, until Freya said, "Over there! On that platform!"

I didn't have the same eyesight as Freya, but after a few seconds, I spotted the platform she was talking about. There was a body on it, collapsed and unmoving. My worst fears came to mind as I wondered if Kuja's last attack had finally killed him. I wouldn't dare accept the possibility. Kaiten had been through way too much now. He deserved to live life for the first time in over a thousand years! I swore to myself then that I would fight through the battlefield to bring him back as thanks for all he had done for me. The first round was on me.

"I'm going to get him," I said, taking off. "Dagger, get the others out of here!"

"You can't go there alone!" she said. "I'm coming with you!"

"More people would slow me down!" I said, already on the next platform. "You guys get to safety!"

"Trevor!" came the cry from Steiner.

I turned, angry. We didn't have time to waste and these distractions whittled precious seconds away. "I said I'm going alone!"

It turned out I misunderstood the knight as he pulled a green vial out of his pouch and tossed it to me. It stung as it landed against my chest, but I caught it all the same. It was a hi-potion. It wouldn't do much, but Kaiten would probably be able to walk again. I just glanced up at Steiner in surprise.

"Don't take too long," he nodded. "Any worthy knight looks out for his comrades."

I nodded back and stuck the potion into my pocket. Zidane and Kuja were still fighting in the space below. Kuja had the advantage of flight, but Zidane had a renewed vigor in protecting his friends. He bounded from platform to platform, jumping at Kuja whenever he could and swinging whenever the madman got too close.

I made my own way, avoiding the conflict and sticking to the remaining ledges and cliff sides. More than once, I had to dodge a magic blast or flying rocks. The slightest wrong move in any direction meant getting killed or knocked off to my death. The others were already making their way out and Zidane was too busy fighting Kuja. If I messed this up now, both Kaiten and I were dead men.

_At least the others are safe,_ I thought to myself.

Kaiten was in bad shape when I reached him. His armor took a lot of the damage, but he was still largely burned and torn. The first sign of life I saw from him was just the gentlest eye twitch. His hair blew back at the pressure of the nearby battle, but he only looked at me as I finally made it to his side once again. His face twisted in effort as he struggled to talk.

"You… fucking idiot," he scolded.

"Gee, nice to see you too," I said over the chaotic din between Zidane and Kuja. "Come on, we've got to go."

"You should have gone. You'd be safe."

"Yeah, but you wouldn't. Here, drink this."

I pulled the potion out of my pocket and brought it to his lips. He slapped it away at first, but I jammed it into his mouth and pulled his head back, forcing it down his throat. He coughed as the hi-potion went to work, repairing his wounds and giving him a small store of energy. He roused and gave me the weakest of punches in the side. If that was his reaction, then I was glad I only gave him a hi-potion and not an elixir.

"Can you walk?" I asked.

Kaiten tried to stand on shaking legs, but collapsed on me and fell to his side. He was panting heavily, still recovering from making it all this way with no energy. I grabbed his wrist and tried to throw it around my shoulder, telling him to hold on.

"Just leave me dammit!" he insisted, pulling himself off and landing on his side again.

Undeterred, I grabbed his arm again and pulled him up.

"I told you to just leave me!" he protested.

"I heard what you said," I told him. "It was idiotic, so I ignored it."

I gave him my best cocky grin and Kaiten stared at me and gave a defeated sigh. He finally let me pull him up and I held his arm around my neck. I hoisted him up to his feet and he leaned into me for support.

"How are we gonna get out of here?" Kaiten asked. "There's no way I can make those jumps to the other platforms. I doubt you can carry me over."

"We'll think of something," I said. "How did you get here?"

"There were some platforms leading the way here, but I did a lot of falling. That way's not an option."

I picked Kaiten up and started walking away from the battle. Zidane was in a fury and Kuja was losing his sanity. Both were giving it all, and it was starting to have an effect on the remaining crystals. Even now, shockwaves from every hit crashed every few seconds. Chunks eroded and flew off in every direction. We weren't in danger of falling off the platform, but if we didn't move, we had a good chance of being hit with a stray magical attack.

We didn't make it far, only to the edge of the platform, when something big impacted behind us, shaking the whole platform. Zidane had been slammed into the floor behind us and was jumping to his feet. He didn't seem to notice us and looked away just as Kuja came into view.

"This is bad," Kaiten said. "We should be moving."

I grabbed Azure just in case, ready to fight if I had to.

"Trevor, I think I need your help," Zidane said, under his breath. His Trance was still going, but he didn't have nearly the same stolen energy stores that Kuja had, who had maintained Trance indefinitely. Zidane couldn't last much longer.

But that wouldn't matter much longer.

Kuja rose, his entire body pink, as he prepared for the largest and most powerful spell of his life. One hand clutched a deep, bleeding wound and blood spat forth like from a faucet. "I'm going to die…" he said, his body shaking, though from the wound or anger, I couldn't tell. "I don't have to be afraid anymore. But I'm not going to die alone! YOU'RE ALL COMING WITH ME!"

"KUJAAA!" Zidane screamed over the scream of Kuja's gathering magic.

"ZIDANE!" I shouted. "LET'S GO!"

But it was too late. Kuja unleashed every ounce of power he had left in one final attack. It was like the finishing blow Kaiten and I gave Damien, except Kuja poured his life energy into this as well. All the magical power in Kuja's body flew into the sky as a singularity. I grabbed Zidane and tried to run, carrying Kaiten along with me. We made a leap of faith onto the nearest platform, Kaiten and I barely making it, but that was as far as we got.

The singularity exploded, and like the Big Bang itself, energy shot out in every direction. I saw it slice through crystal with ease. This was not like a knife through butter. This was like a knife through soup. There was no resistance and the rocks disintegrated instantly. It was just like cutting through something with my Explosion capped swords. I saw a platform turned to dust instantly, and I knew, this was Purple Magic in its purest form.

I ran with Zidane leading the way and Kaiten in tow, but we only made it a few feet at best. I heard a scream come rocketing over my shoulder, and suddenly, a flash of deep pink crashed through the platform, melting everything before it and leaving nothing left.

Right where Zidane had been standing.

"Zidane?!" I screamed, unsure if what I had seen was real, or if I had blinked and missed it. There was no sign of the thief left. "ZIDANE!"

"Behind us!" Kaiten shouted next to my ear.

I turned to look, but my vision was lost in the pink haze coming my way. I braced myself, and thought about reaching for my short sword to defend the two of us, but it didn't seem worth it. I knew I didn't have time. I just held on to Kaiten, trying to shield him, as the Ultima cut through me in the fraction of a second.

We never even hit the ground.

XXXXXXXX

Alright guys! Contest time! You've seen them fight through 4 books, so now it's your turn to pick your favorite characters! Who do you want fighting alongside Trevor and Kaiten in the final fight against Necron? Pick whoever you want within the original party, up to 4 people. People voting for Chuck Norris will receive a swift kick in the head. The top 4 characters will fight in the final battle, and I'll do whatever I can to make it the most kickass one yet! Please vote either through PMs or reviews. Votes via telepathy will not be accepted. Just like my boss has failed to learn, I'm very bad at picking up telepathic messages.

-Krimson Rogue/Kyle Martin/KR Martin XD


	12. Futile Struggle

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's notes: Alright! The voting is complete and tallied up! And the results are…

Vivi- 8

Zidane- 6

Freya- 6

Dagger- 4

Amarant- 4

Quina- 3

Steiner- 1

Eiko- 1

I'll admit, the results didn't come out the way I expected, but then again, this is probably a good sign of character popularity, so now I've learned something else about my writing. Thanks for that guys. XD Now, we did have a tie between Dagger and Amarant, so I ended up choosing Dagger since there wasn't a designated healer in the group. I needed a way to counter Grand Cross after all. :P Still is anyway actually surprised that Vivi came out on top here? Just about everyone who voted, voted for him. XD

And now we come to the final battle in our story. The fight against Death personified! The struggle of the will to live! Let's end Shattered Mind on a bang!

Chapter 12- Futile Struggle.

XXXXXXXX

_What the hell happened?_

I pushed myself up against the rough rock surface. I could taste ash and smelled brimstone all around me. A thick fog rolled around us, swirling into the distance. There were clouds far above us, lit from behind with an angelic glow. My mind had to struggle to remember where I was for a moment, but then I gasped in shock as the fight against Kuja came back in an instant.

The Hill of Despair! We were on the game's version of the River Styx!

I had almost no energy, but forced myself to my feet anyway. I made it two steps before I fell forward again. Was this it again? Was I going to die all over? Garland wasn't around to pull my soul out of the fire this time. If I died, I would stay dead. I craned my head around as best I could, but I was on the middle of a short hill. I could barely see through the fog, but I was the only one around as far as I could tell.

"God dammit…" I groaned, and started pulling my way along the rough rocks on the hill. Moving was slow and painful. I felt as tired as I was after fighting Deathguise. My chest burned, my bones felt brittle, and I couldn't tell what parts of my body were bleeding and what weren't. The rocks below poked and dragged against my skin, worsening the wounds, but I had no idea how badly.

In the distance, I could see an arena or sorts. There were rings upon rings, connected by arches, like the walls of the Roman Coliseum. The inside of the coliseum was the only source of light around. Dark brown clouds swirled around the ruins. It stuck out instantly and I stared in wonder. We were really going to fight up there?

"Who's there?" came a voice nearby. I heaved one more desperate pull and popped over the crest over the hill. And that's when I saw them.

Most of the other party members were scattered around a small plateau of sorts. The top of the hill spread out with only a few bumps here and there. I tried to take count of all of them, but every time I did, I came up short. Freya, Dagger, Vivi, Eiko, Amarant and Steiner were all lying around, all in various states of disarray. Dagger was busy casting spells, but all she could do was cast Cure spells. They didn't do much to energize anyone. Freya was the only one strong enough to stand, though she had to lean on her polearm for support.

"Trevor?" Freya asked. "You're alive?"

"…Guys?" I gasped. "How did you get here?"

"We were all hit by Kuja's attack," Freya said. "We tried to run out of the way, but it was all-encompassing. Every corner was hit and there was nowhere to run."

"Then Zidane, Quina…Kaiten?"

"We haven't seen them," Steiner spoke up. "But they have to be here. Just have faith."

Dagger pushed off the ground and propped herself up on an elbow. "If they were hit by the same attack, then they have to be here."

"More importantly, where are we now?" Freya asked. "Trevor? Is this place familiar?"

"This is the Hill of Despair," I explained. I used my shaking arms to lift myself up to my knees. "The game never explained what this place was exactly, but from what I can gather, this is… the afterlife."

"Afterlife?" Eiko asked. "Wait… you mean we're… dead?"

"Bullshit," Amarant grunted. "There's no way I'm going to die! Not now!"

"And you won't have to," I said, crawling my way to the others. "We're gonna fight. There's a monster coming, stronger than anything we've fought thus far."

"Another monster?" Vivi asked, horrified. "But… I'm way too tired to fight! We all are!"

"His name is Necron. He is… unique."

"Unique how?" Freya asked. When I hesitated, she repeated herself, louder. "Unique HOW?"

"I'm not sure," I admitted. "The game gets really vague around this point, but his goal is to end all life. He's basically death incarnate."

My words were not exactly encouraging. Everyone's faces dropped and I couldn't blame them. The thought worried me too, not to mention the fact that we had been here as long as we had and Necron hadn't made a move. In the game, he appeared almost immediately. Why delay now?

I feared the worst when I heard the crunching of rock. My head snapped up, not sure how Necron would approach us, but was relieved at once I saw the three familiar heads coming up over the hill.

"Zidane!" I cried out. I shuffled forward, falling onto my chest more than once. He made himself look like the strongest of us all as he walked in, not only by staggering in on both feet, but also by carrying Kaiten by the shoulder, barely holding them both on shaking feet. Quina shuffled his feet in behind them, panting so hard that his tongue nearly reached the ground.

As I neared the newcomers, Zidane finally collapsed. I tried to catch them both, but Kaiten landed hard against my stomach. Zidane just landed on my arm and rolled away, towards the others. In a panic, I examined Kaiten, fearing the worst. His armor was still in tact and I didn't see any excess blood. In, fact, Kaiten seemed quite alright. He wasn't injured per say, but he gave very shallow breaths, almost like he was asleep.

"Kaiten?" I asked, trying to wake him up. "Hey, are you alright?"

"No energy…" he muttered. "Can't stand…"

"IS everyone here?" Zidane asked, picking himself up to his knees. "What happened to the Crystal?"

"Was it hit?" Steiner asked. "I didn't see it get hit."

"Wouldn't we be dead if it was?" Eiko asked. "I mean, that rock was what powered all life on Gaia, wasn't it?"

"How do we know we aren't dead?" Freya asked morbidly. "Look at this place. It's barren and uninhabitable."

"In my world, we'd call a place like this Hell," I explained. "It's where evil souls go for all eternity."

"But we were good!" Vivi was quick to point out. "We saved the world! Or, we tried to…"

"True," I agreed. "That should put us in Heaven, but Heaven is supposed to look a lot nicer than this."

"Then, where is this?"

**You stand before the final dimension, and I am the darkness of eternity…**

Everyone jumped when the voice boomed over the hill. It sounded as if it came from the ruined structure up above us. I had to force myself up and grab my short swords. Around the hill, everyone else drew their weapons. My warning about Necron was coming true and none of us were going to be caught unprepared, although none of us had the energy to fight.

"Who are you…?" Dagger asked as she stood, pushing herself up with her staff.

**All life bears death from birth. Life fears death, but only lives to die. Life naturally fears death and wishes for a world without. The only cure for this fear is total destruction. Kuja was a victim of his own fear. He concluded he could only save himself by destroying the origin of all life on Gaia—the Crystal. **

"What the hell are you talking about?" Zidane demanded. "Why are you telling us this?"

**Now the theory is undeniable. Kuja's actions prove it. All things live to perish. At last, life has uncovered this fact. Now, it is time to end this world.**

The clouds swirled above and thunder rolled over the hill. I had tolerated enough of this. We didn't even know for sure if we had beaten Kuja or where he was. Did he die in the Ultima blast too? Did Zidane inflict a mortal wound? The world was still in danger one-way or the other.

As I looked to Kaiten, barely breathing at my side, I couldn't help but feel helpless. This was the man who had helped me through this entire game at great personal cost. Even now that he had his own body, he was still saving me to the point of self-sacrifice. I wanted to save the world and all my friends, but most of all, I wanted to save Kaiten. He had saved my life so often, I owed him more than I could repay.

"You… fucking selfish twat!" I shouted as I hobbled next to Zidane. "You think you know what it's like to be human?! You think all we think about is fear and death? What about people who work their asses off to get money?! Or people who build families? Your logic is entirely flawed!"

But Necron was unwilling to listen. His voice boomed over the hill again, maintaining his calm, arrogant demeanor.

**I exist for one purpose… To return everything back to the Zero World, where there is no life and no Crystal to give life. In a world of nothing, fear does not exist. This is the world that all life desires.**

"Who would want that?" Freya said. "Without emotions like fear, anger and sorrow, you can't appreciate the better half of life!"

"That's right," Dagger said as she joined our growing line. "I have an entire kingdom of citizens back home to look over! Every one of them has the right to life!"

**Would they not be happier without fear? Why would you make that choice for them? What right do you have to choose a life of hardship for them?**

"You're doing exactly the same thing!" Zidane pointed out. "You're choosing the life they should leave, even as we're telling you we don't want that!"

"I've made so many friends back home," Vivi said, crawling over to us. "And I can make so many more. Please, I don't want them to die!"

**Would you rather they suffer? Feel anguish and pain? Feel loss and despair?**

"I would," I answered. "Freya's right! Without the bad in life, you don't really know what good is! I'll take the broken arm. It just means I get a cute girl to nurse me back to health!"

**Enough of this foolish banter. There is nothing you can do to stop me. Stay out of my machinations and I promise swift, painless deaths.**

"Dammit, this isn't going to work!" Zidane said. He took a step forward, but was still so exhausted that he fell to one knee. "We have to stop him!"

"But how?" Dagger asked. "None of us are in fighting condition, and even if we were, we have no way to reach him!"

Zidane's worried look reflected how we all felt. Even I felt the terror of the moment. Necron was hard to beat, even with a fully leveled team! He was fast, strong, had tons of devastating attacks, and had no real weaknesses. Plus, he wasn't acting like he did in the game. He was supposed to levitate us up to fight him. Here, he didn't seem interested in dueling. How the hell were we going to win this? The despair of the moment gripped me and I had to remind myself to keep control over my fear.

"Princess," Steiner said, still lying on his side. He dragged himself along the ground, using his sword as a cane.

"Steiner!" Dagger called out. "Don't strain yourself. Just lie still and let me heal you!"

"There's no time," he insisted. "I swore an oath to protect you. As Captain of the Knights of Pluto, it would be my eternal shame to let you fall in such a place as this!"

We all watched as Steiner struggled to pick himself up to his knees. He leaned heavily on his sword, digging it into a crack in a rock. "Freya, as a fellow knight, I entrust the safety of her highness to you. Will you watch over her?"

"Steiner?" Freya asked, as confused as anyone else. "What are you going to do?"

"Promise me, dammit!" Steiner exploded. "I'm not strong enough to do it on my own. I see that now, so I must rely on you!"

Freya watched in utter shock. This was so unlike Steiner, yet given the dire situation, it wasn't unreasonable. After a moment, she nodded. "Yes, I swear I'll protect her like I would my own king!"

Steiner sighed from relief and he stretched his hand out, as if reaching for Freya. "Thank you. Although I am unworthy, please accept my powers…"

Suddenly, to everyone's surprise, an orb of sparkling energy jumped out of Steiner's hand. It bubbled in the air and shot towards the dragon knight, hitting her in the chest. It was like a rainbow of colors shot out of Freya's heart within a second and she found a new strength. Standing didn't seem like a challenge anymore and she returned to her old fighting self.

"I feel… good," she said, examining herself. "In fact, stronger than before! Steiner, I…"

But Steiner had collapsed. Giving his remaining strength had taken everything out of him and he was now unconscious, perhaps even comatose. His breaths were very shallow, almost to the point where I worried that he would stop breathing altogether.

Freya just kneeled by his sleeping form and rested a hand on his shoulder. "Thank you, Steiner. I'll watch over all of them."

Now we seemed to have a chance! Eiko sat up next, holding her flute tight in her hand. She had a sad look about her, but stared at Dagger, choking back a tear and glaring with determination. "You always were the stronger white mage," she admitted. "Promise me you'll win!"

The same orb of pure energy flowed through the air between the white mages. It finally connected to Dagger with the same colorful display of power. The queen quickly recovered her stance just in time to watch Eiko collapse onto her stomach.

"No!" Dagger cried out, running to Eiko's side. She held the little girl in her arms, cradling her head. Eiko was asleep, breathing so low that I had to concentrate to even see her stomach move. "Eiko… Why did you do it?"

"She knew you were strong enough to win," Zidane said, cupping his hand on Dagger's shoulder. "How do you feel?"

"I'm… I can fight," Dagger answered slowly. "But Eiko…"

"She'll be fine," I assured her. "Everyone will be fine if we can just win this. They're just gonna sleep while we fight far from here. Now who's next?"

"Aya, I go," Quina said, perhaps more enthusiastically than he had to. He just gave his goofy grin and he shot his own well of magic at Vivi. "Come back to Alexandria when you beat bad guy. I make big meal for everyone…"

Vivi, as the only remaining mage, accepted the power into his tiny frame. Raw mana seemed to pour out of him like water. He panted at first, but the power grew on him quickly and he stood, ready for battle. His Mace of Zeus flashed once, as if Vivi had unlocked some special power from within it. "Quina! You're a lot stronger than you looked!"

But the Qu was already unconscious. He landed on his back with a loud 'THUD'. His massive tongue plopped down on his stomach and he was asleep. Unlike the others though, Quina seemed to snore, albeit very gently.

From across the hill, Zidane met eyes with Amarant, who was still stuck on his stomach. The red-haired bandit growled as he struggled to do even a single push up. Agitated, he punched the ground furiously, but he was so weak that he barely chipped any of the rocky floor. He resigned himself with a sigh and dropped his head. "Fine," he said. "Just don't screw up."

Amarant held his arm out and an orb of strength left his hand. Zidane accepted it and absorbed the energy. His muscles tensed all at once, so quickly that he fell over. However, he recovered into a tumble and soon leapt back to his feet, just like the nimble fighter he once was. Zidane flexed his hand, stronger than ever before.

"Alright, we can do this!" he said. He glanced over at me, spinning The Tower in one hand before resting it against the ground.

I just sighed at what I had to do. Kaiten was the obvious choice here. He led a special ops team. He was a lieutenant in the military. He had far more experience with purple magic than I did. I turned to give him my energy, but only saw him holding his arm out at me. I watched him for a moment, stunned at his decision.

"What are you doing?!" I demanded. "Stop!"

"You'll make a better fighter now," Kaiten said fatally. "Stay with the others. Watch their backs!"

I grabbed Kaiten by the wrist, twisting it away. "You're the better fighter! You do it!"

Kaiten dropped his arm and his gaze. There was a short silence between us as he refused to raise his eyes. "I'm sorry Trevor. Kuja was my last fight. I'm spent."

I was horrified beyond belief with every word he said. "Wait… what are you saying?"

"My team is dead, but you have your own team now. Your own group of eight crazy bastards who'll follow you into whatever hell you need to lead them into. Take care of them and they'll take care of you. Just try not to lead them into any ambushes."

"Kaiten, you're not giving up, are you?!"

"I've seen how this battle ends Trevor. When it's over, leave me here. I want to be with my team again…"

I was too late. I fell to Kaiten's side, but he had already released his energy. The rainbow orb slowly floated to me. I wasn't sure if I even wanted the power. I certainly didn't want the sacrifice. I wanted to shoot the power back at Kaiten, but I stayed still as the orb sank into me. Perhaps it was out of respect of a friend's decision, but I was angry at his selfishness all the same.

"You asshole!" I shouted with growing strength. Power coursed through my veins, but it almost made me sick to my stomach. Kaiten was now asleep at my feet, with a haggard expression on his face. "Stupid fucking bastard!"

I reached down, punching Kaiten as hard as I could in the back. He coughed once, but didn't rouse from his slumber at all. How could he ask me to leave him behind? Did he know I was just fighting to get us both back? He could still have a home! He could still have friends!

"Trevor?" Zidane asked. "What's wrong?"

I just sighed, resolving to give Kaiten hell as soon as we were out of here. "Nothing," was all I said as I approached the others.

"I guess we're ready," Dagger said. "But how are we going to get up there to fight?"

Zidane turned to me. "Any ideas?"

I sighed, pushing my thoughts from my head. I had other things to worry about. "In the game, we just sort of float up there and hover in the middle of that coliseum up there. And before you ask, no, I have no idea how we're supposed to get up there."

Freya folded her arms grumpily. "So, we're stuck here until we find a ladder or stairs?"

"We are," I said. "You might be able to jump that high, but unless you have some rope you can tie off up there, the rest of us are screwed."

"Then what are we going to do?" Dagger asked. "We can't let him destroy the world!"

Our plight seemed hopeless. Necron was still just a dot in the sky far above. If he wasn't going to help us get up there, then we really didn't have a chance. Perhaps there was a way to bring him down to us? But how could we trick an omnipotent demi-god into a fight? Insult his mother? No, that wouldn't work. Despite his name, I doubted Necron was Greek.

Just then, a blue light surrounded each of us. There was a warmth in the air, as if someone had cast a spell on each of us. Everyone glowed briefly for a moment, before the light faded away. Nothing seemed different as I examined my body.

"What was that?" Vivi asked. "Dagger? Did you do that?"

"It wasn't me," Dagger said. "Freya, was that one of your spells?"

"I have no idea what that was," the dragon knight admitted.

But I had an inkling. "I think that was the same spell from the game. The one that's cast on the party before everyone flies up to the coliseum."

Freya shook her head. "Trevor, I know this must be difficult for you, but please stop referring to this as a game. I find it very unsettling. My life is not a plaything."

"Uh, right," I said. "Sorry Freya."

"It's alright," she said. "Now, how do we use this spell?"

"Uhh… I dunno. In the ga—, I mean… it should just happen. We could try jumping."

"My specialty," Freya said. She crouched down for a moment and launched herself into the air. I had seen Freya make some impressive jumps before, but this was her best one yet! She obviously didn't expect the effect of the spell to be so strong, but rather than plummet back to the ground, she continued upwards, almost flying, towards the coliseum.

"As if she wasn't showing off before," I muttered.

"Is it really that easy?" Zidane asked. "I guess we're next. Are you guys ready?"

Dagger, Vivi and I all nodded in the affirmative. Zidane took the lead and with a running start, leapt as hard as he could into the air. His accent wasn't as graceful as Freya's, but he was on course, headed straight for the coliseum. The rest of us took off one after the other after him, and soon the entire party was flying upwards. It was bizarre, seeing the hill shrink away. I took one more look back, promising myself not to let Kaiten fall behind and be left here.

The flight to the coliseum didn't last long. As soon as we arrived, our flight seemed to falter and we dropped safely to a row of platforms. We were spread out, surrounding Necron as best we could without completely separating. The coliseum itself was similar to the game, but every row of arches carried a walkway wide enough for two people, with the occasional staircase between levels. Some of the pillars here were so thick that it might have been possible to move around undetected, at least in short bursts. However, none of that compared to the awesome spectacle that was Necron.

We all froze in astonishment. I knew Necron would be big, but actually seeing him made me light-headed. He stood from nearly the top of the coliseum to the bottom, at over two hundred feet tall! At his core, he looked like an enormous blue-skinned man, with crossed arms resting permanently below his neck. He had a nose and lips, but his eyes were missing, replaced with patches of torn blackened holes. He had two pairs of rings about him, the first pair spinning opposite each other at his waist, and the other pair resting one inside the other, intersecting his neck and torso. Finally, the extensions coming out of his shoulders made him look much larger. He had twisted tendrils forming sharps claws that passed his knees, which took the place of his arms. He also had a pair of marble wings on each shoulder, overlapping each other.

Just looking at him was intimidating.

"This is gonna suck, isn't it?" I asked.

"Do we really have a chance?" Dagger asked. We all thought the same thing, but she was the only one to voice it. I didn't answer her, because for once, I wasn't sure. Necron always freaked me out in the game, even with the best stats and levels, just because he got multiple turns during each attack round and his spells were the most devastating in the game.

"We'll make it," I said, even though I wasn't sure myself.

Necron barely noticed us at first. It was only when we landed on the coliseum grounds that he looked down at us. However, we barely registered as a threat to him and he was still extremely passive in talking to us.

** You've found your way up to this place? Impressive, though futile. Your struggle is as pointless as ever.**

"Wait, what?" I blurted out. I found I had to shout for my voice to carry at all to the massive giant. "Then you really didn't cast the flight spell that brought us here?"

**Why would I hinder my plans by allowing your interference?**

He did have a point. However, I wasn't about to question a chance to fight back. Now, we actually had a chance. We all drew our weapons, boiling over with power and with higher stakes than ever before! I couldn't stop my leg from twitching nervously, so I just tried to concentrate on my short swords.

**If you stay your hands, I shall keep my promise of your swift demise. Otherwise, I cannot be held accountable for what may happen to you.**

"Enough of this!" Freya shouted. "Too much of this world has already been destroyed! I won't allow you to do anymore!"

With a roar, Freya leapt into battle. If the flight spell was still active on her, I couldn't tell. She jumped from the platform with all her strength, bringing her polearm in low and hard. She aimed for Necron's mid-section, looking just like a mosquito as she flew. With one more cry as she neared the massive demi-god, she tore into his side, shooting her Dragon magic through him.

Necron barely budged at the assault and made no move to prevent it. Instead, he glanced down at Freya, then swung his tendril limbs at her, smashing her into the walls He moved impossibly fast, so much so that I didn't think he would have any trouble blocking us if he really wanted to. We lost sight of Freya immediately. How was I supposed to get close enough to do any damage to this guy without getting my head bashed in?

"Freya!" Zidane gasped. "Hold on!"

"Zidane, WAIT!" I called after him as he rushed out. Freya was embedded in the wall she crashed into, but Zidane had another target in mind. Blinded by emotions, he leapt to Necron. The flight spell was still in effect and he moved freely, like he was in a zero-G environment. He made it to Necron's center, swirling his blades about like he was showing off. Each swing connected, digging deeper into Necron's natural armor, but even with all our strength, we were effectively giving him paper cuts. Necron didn't find the assault very amusing though and slapped Zidane away just like he had Freya. The thief flew uncontrollably into the opposite end of the arena.

"Dammit," I muttered. "Can we do anything against this guy? He hasn't even felt anything we've done so far!"

"I think I can!" Vivi called from his perch on the coliseum wall. "Thundaga!"

A thick storm cloud gathered above Necron's head high above. The giant bothered to look up just as a thunderous bolt of lightning shot down from above, directly into his face. The thick bolt arced violently, forcing a grunt from Necron. For a moment, it seemed like he had a chance to win, until the cloud dissipated after a few second. Necron looked down at us, angered at the turn of events, but with barely even a smudge on his face.

In retaliation, Necron crossed his tendrils and powered up a simple spell. Blue lightning channeled down his shoulders and into his clawtips. With a flash, he loosed the spell, which collapsed on Vivi. There was little sound to the attack, which was like a high-pitched bell ringing once, but the effect was devastating. Vivi was lost in a splash of blue and purple light, but I saw shreds of jacket flying, as well as blood splattering about. Vivi fell back behind a pillar and I lost sight of him.

"Vivi!" I called out. I was far enough away that it was all I could do anyway.

"Vivi, hold on!" Dagger cried out. She was further form him than I was, but her advantage was in her range. Her white magic was charged in an instant and I saw a white light glow from where Vivi had fallen. At least he wouldn't die. Assuming he wasn't already.

Next, Necron focused on Dagger. Since she healed Vivi, he must have seen her as a threat. A red glow started at her feet, and a second later, Dagger was consumed by fire. She had just enough time to scream, but the Firaga made short work of her. Her voice faded away like an echo and she too dropped a few arches away from me.

It was as incredible as it was horrifying. In under twenty seconds, our party had been all but destroyed. The world's strongest fighters barely even register as more than bugs to this demi-god. I had questioned our chances before, but this time was different. In a different realm, without Kaiten by my side, I felt weak and helpless. My friends were down, Dagger was probably burned, Vivi was probably unconscious, and Freya and Zidane were dead for all I knew. There was no way I could accomplish something like this on my own. What I wouldn't give for a controller and a game shark right about now.

**As you can see, there is nothing you can do. Give in and accept your fate.**

Necron looked down at me as he spoke. His voice echoed in my head, dripping with superiority. It was a harsh reminder of exactly how much of a chance I stood. With no desire to lay down and die, I did the only thing I could do.

I ran.

I used the pillars and arches of the coliseum as cover, for what good it did me. Even if I could hide out here indefinitely, I had no way to attack. I had to get to the others and save them. I was the only one we had left. If I went down, then we were royally fucked.

Dagger was the closest. Keeping my eye on Necron, I tried my best to stay behind cover, but just like the Mona Lisa, his gaze seemed to follow me, no matter where I ran or how fast I got there. His blank face just stared ahead, maintaining an eerie silence. Perhaps he didn't attack me out of some perverted sense of amusement, or perhaps it was because I was the only one who hadn't attacked him yet.

Necron was neither amused or threatened by my actions. He voice kept the same bored, calm clarity it always had.

**Your destiny is sealed. Why defy your fate?**

"Because fuck fate!" I shouted. "I'll die when I feel like it! I don't fucking feel like it right now!"

**Are all mortals so blind and foolish?**

Necron could taunt me all he wanted, but I wasn't going to go rushing headlong into a fight I could never win. I ignored his quips, always watching him around every pillar, until I finally came to Dagger. She was badly hurt, but still alive. Her skin was blistered and peeling. In the attack, it looked like her staff had been knocked away. I found it just a few feet away and picked it up.

"Dagger, you alright?" I said.

She only groaned at first. She hadn't been able to heal herself and she was likely in a lot of pain. I wished I could have healed her myself, but I didn't know the first thing about white magic.

"Tre… Trevor…?" Dagger finally said. "My… staff…?"

"I have it right here," I said, kneeling beside her. "Just hang on a little longer. I have to move you so Necron doesn't attack us again. You might want to bite your lip. This is gonna hurt."

I held Dagger as gently as I could, carrying her by the shoulders and dragging her back. Her body was still overly warm from the magic and she couldn't help but scream until I let her down against a pillar. Now at least we were in Necron's blind spot. I handed Dagger her staff, adjusting her hands so she could properly grasp it. Within seconds, a white glow surrounded her and the burns smoothed out, patching her skin back up.

Dagger moaned as the pain faded. "Thanks Trevor. I don't think I could have made it on my own."

"Yeah, neither could the others right about now," I said. "Can you walk? We need to regroup."

Dagger pushed herself up, but slowly. Her legs shook and her shoulders sagged wearily. She leaned on the pillar for support and took a deep breath.

"Are you alright?" I asked.

"I'll be fine. Just give me a moment." Dagger cast another spell, washing away further wounds. By the time the spell's light cleared, the worst damage seemed to be the tears in her leotard. "There, much better."

"Good. Now we'll need to run. Vivi fell from quite a ways away and we need to reach him as soon as we can. You probably saved him from bleeding out with your first spell, but the attack that hit him is called Blue Shockwave. He's lucky it didn't kill him."

"Then let's not waste time," she said. "Lead the way. I'm right behind you."

The walkways would lead us to the others easily enough, though I worried about Necron simply smashing us where we ran. Bored disinterest seemed to be the only thing saving us from instant destruction, like ignoring ants on a hike. If that was the case, then could any resistance we built up stop him? Did we really stand any chance at all?

We may have been looking for Vivi, but in our attempt to navigate the walkways behind the scenes, we found another team member first as he pulled himself out of a crumbling pillar.

"Zidane!" Dagger cried out. "Hold still, I'll heal you in a second."

"Dagger?" he looked up as white light mended his broken bones and patched his skin. "That was insane! I don't think I even hurt him!"

"You probably didn't," I said grimly. "We're gonna need a plan to stop him."

"How did you stop him in your game?"

"You know, you're really getting kinda reliant on that angle."

"Well, what would you do if your friend knew everything about the universe by seeing it before?"

"Fair point. But it won't help. The game is set on a turn based combat system. Basically, you take turns hitting each other. Somehow, I don't think that'll work here."

"Damn, you're right," Zidane said. "What about strategy? Any ideas?"

"Well, maybe if we had some potions or something…"

Zidane just smirked as he opened the pouch at his side. Inside were various vials with healing potions inside. Hi-Potions, elixirs, and a few status-curing salves were inside, curing blindness and burns should we come across them. There wasn't a lot to be had, but it was better than nothing. I grinned back at Zidane. Now, we had a chance.

"Alright, now this might help," I said. "If everyone had a few of these, we might be able to fight back. Necron seems content on slapping us away and keeping us separated. If we all had potions, we could recover quicker and fight back all the sooner. We need to find everyone and hand them out."

"Sounds good," Zidane said. "Here, take these."

Zidane handed me three Hi-Potions and an elixir. We didn't have a lot of supplies, so we would have to make due with what we had. I handed a Hi-Potion to Dagger, just in case she needed it, and kept the rest for myself. I kept them in a pouch at my side, hoping I wouldn't have to use them.

"Now we just need to find the others," Zidane said. "Do you have any idea where Freya landed?"

"Not really," I admitted. "But we saw where Vivi fell. We were heading to him actually."

"Good. You go find him, I'll find Freya. I think I might know where she is. We'll come to you when we're ready."

Zidane handed me two more Hi-Potions for Vivi and gave us a nod. He backed away to the archways and stepped out to the open arena. Using the flight spell, he flew up, higher into the coliseum. I just hoped he knew where he was going. I had no idea how long it would take Necron to destroy the Crystal and I wasn't willing to find out.

"So what's your plan?" Dagger asked as we took off down the halls for Vivi again.

"The reason we didn't last long at all last time was because we attacked one on one," I explained. "We need to swarm him all together."

"And that's where the potions come in?"

"Both the potions and you. We'll need you to stay back and keep healing us, but we'll have the potions just in case. That way, we can keep fighting as much as we need. With luck, we'll whittle him down into nothing before he can do too much damage."

"You think that can work?"

"If we're careful and hit him as hard as we can, yes. It's the best chance we've got."

Just then, there was a cacophonous explosion above us. The entire coliseum seemed to shake, and even a few chunks of rock fell passed us on the other side of the archway. I risked looking up and around the arena, just in time to see Necron pulling his tendrils out of the wall. When he was clear of the wall, Zidane's limp body fell free from a newly formed crater. He plummeted like a rock at first, saved only by activating his flight spell. Zidane crash landed at the bottom level of the coliseum, barely clearing the platform. However, a small spinning bag caught my eye as it dropped into the clouds and fell out of sight.

"Dagger, did you see that?" I asked.

Dagger, who had been watching Zidane to see if he was alright, turned and saw the potions bag fall at the last second. Swirling clouds consumed it and my plan was dead in the water, just as quickly as we had come up with it. Now we were back with nothing, again.

"We have to go back for him!" Dagger cried out.

However, that wasn't an option. Necron turned to face us and picked his tendrils high in the air.

I grabbed Dagger's wrist and began to run. "MOVE!" I screamed, seconds before the archways began to crumble. Rock and dust clouded everywhere, blinding us if not for the repetitive hallways. Necron removed his tendrils from the rubble, having nearly slicing the coliseum in half, leaving a twenty-foot gap where we had been standing. Dagger and I twisted into a pillar for cover and stopped. Necron couldn't see us and hopefully we could trick him into thinking we were dead.

"We have to keep going," I said after a minute. "Vivi's close."

"But what about Zidane?" Dagger asked.

"We saw him land safely," I reminded her. "We need to keep going and come up with a new plan. I might be able to make one if Vivi is with us."

Dagger took a lovelorn look back at Zidane, then turned and forced her eyes shut. "Let's just go," she said. "Freya's still missing too. Maybe we can find her."

"Good thinking," I said as Dagger took the lead down the pathway. "Zidane will find his way to us."

We kept to the shadows as best we could, using the archways for cover. Necron continued his disinterested surveillance of the coliseum, but by now, everyone had to have figured out to stay down. The enormous demi-god didn't take any actions against any of us. That told me the others were either alive and hiding, or dead. Right now, my biggest concern was Vivi.

It only took us another minute to reach the little mage. His jacket was stained red with blood, but the first heal spell Dagger had used on him had saved his life. Now Vivi was weakened and bleeding meagerly, cupping his wound on his chest with a hand. He looked up at us with half-lidded eyes, coughing as part of his greeting.

"Don't try to talk," Dagger warned him, kneeling down by his side. She held her staff over her, casting her white magic upon him. The wound in Vivi's chest healed and his blood loss fixed itself. He took a deep gasp, coughing out a mouthful of remnant blood.

"Are you alright?" I asked him, helping him retrieve his staff.

Vivi pushed himself up and pressed against the pillar as Dagger and I soon did. He wiped some excess blood from his lips and looked up at us. "Y-yeah. Thanks guys. I didn't think I was gonna make it."

Dagger cast another healing spell on Vivi, making sure he was back to 100 percent. "Now what are we going to do? Should we find the others?"

"Perhaps," I thought, carefully watching Necron through the archway. "But he might be hunting us. If that's the case, then our best bet is to attack. If we keep cover and move fast, he shouldn't be able to keep up with us. You can both cast magic on the run, right?"

"Um, I think so," Vivi said.

"I should be able to," Dagger added. "Do you have a plan?"

"I do," I grinned. "Remember how we beat the Lich back in Memoria?"

Dagger and Vivi's eyes lit up as they figured out what I was planning. Dagger approached the plan apprehensively though. "So, we just reflect spells off each other and keep running down the ruins?"

"Almost," I said. "You'll be casting them off of me. You two cast the magic, I'll aim for you and take the risk. I'm faster and more agile anyway. We'll just keep it up until we find Zidane and Freya. They should be able to help pick Necron apart after that."

"But are you sure it'll work?" Dagger asked. "He's been impervious to everything so far! You saw what happened to Zidane and Freya!"

"True, except for one thing," I added with a grin, pointing to Vivi. "Necron screamed when Vivi attacked him. Blades and melee won't do much due to his size, but magic obviously will. We just need to hit him enough and he'll go down. Freya and Zidane can add their magic when they come back."

Vivi looked between Dagger and myself, but didn't have to ask about the risk. I could tell he was hesitant, but we had gotten this far. This was just another insane risk in a long collection of insane risks. "What should I use?" Vivi asked.

"Something big," I said. "Thundaga worked last time, so stick with third tier spells. Maybe throw in a Flare if you can charge it in time."

I took a deep breath to psych myself up. "Alright then. You guys ready?"

"I'm ready," Dagger said, getting ready to run.

"Ready," Vivi said. He was already charging a spell.

I stood in the archway, giving myself a clear shot at the behemoth before us. "Just be ready to run. We'll go right first and keep going that way for a while. We'll double back if he doesn't destroy any more of the coliseum, ok?"

"Got it," Dagger said. She cast Reflect on me and stood back, making sure to give me enough room to run passed her. "Vivi, do it!"

I braced myself, knowing the spell would bounce off of me harmlessly, but still afraid. I had faith in both Dagger and Vivi. They were great, among the best mages on the planet. It would take two or three rounds tops to get a rhythm down. After that, Necron was really screwed!

The Thundaga hit my Reflect shield, causing the red wall around me to shine. The lightning shot towards Necron, who hovered in the middle of the arena unsuspectingly. I braced myself to run, waiting to see the spell hit, but another spell was cast first. My expression dropped as a very familiar red wall passed over Necron as he cast Reflect on himself as well. It shined as the Thundaga ricocheted back at me.

Given that spells grew in strength when they reflected, I was already in enough trouble. However, the twice-reflected spell wasn't aiming for me vertically like Thundaga normally was. The spell had condensed into a ball of pure energy and all its force was coming for me from the front.

"Oh shi—"

The impact came at last, burning every inch of skin, blistering and bubbling it as the pent-up kinetic energy blasted me off my feet. I was hit so hard that I was not only picked up off of my feet, but I was sent spinning backwards. Dagger and Vivi were pulled away from me as I flew out of the coliseum, with no control over my trajectory. I tried to enable the flight spell, but I had been hit too hard and couldn't pull myself out of my fall. Just my luck that the laws of physics would now come back into play.

I would have fallen into eternity at the rate I was going. I would have, but my luck had another twist to play. Rather than fall into the nether, I crashed into a large chunk of rock free floating outside of the coliseum. I could vaguely recall there being a few large chunks torn from the coliseum before we got here. Now, it seems like I had been saved by it. Good thing for overlooked background detail!

However, my problems hadn't lessened. I had been in the air for less than a minute, but I was far off from the massive coliseum. I tried looking all over for Dagger and Vivi, but I had no idea where they were anymore. Honestly, I wasn't even sure which floor I had been on before! I sighed at first, then roared in irritation. Getting the party back together was going to be impossible at this rate! I could only hope Dagger and Vivi had run off when they had the chance.

I still wasn't quite sure how to use the flight spell, but I could feel a sudden lightness about me all of a sudden. I took a breath and pushed off from the broken ruin, aiming for the top of the coliseum. From there, I might be able to see the others, or perhaps I could even drop in on Necron. I haven't had a chance to really attack him myself, and I had no idea if purple magic would hurt him or not. Maybe if I acted after enough, I could use my Demon Sabers to cut his head off.

The coliseum came back into range within moments. I couldn't fly around like I could in the fight against Damien, but my aim was true. I landed hard against the top archway and gravity took over again, dropping me to the pathway. From here, I had a vantage point for the entire arena, as well as the upper hand on Necron. I was above him at his side. In his blind spot.

Attacking him from here would be easy, if I were subtle about it. I decided not to take any chances and carefully shifted around to his back, to ensure that he couldn't see me. I couldn't tell if he was distracted since he only had half a face, but he wasn't looking towards me, so that was the best to hope for. Perhaps that meant the others were across the arena from me. That meant I had something to aim for, or a direction to retreat to.

I waited until I was directly behind Necron. Now, he had no way to see me and no way to prepare. I silently and slowly extended Demon Sabers from both Crimson and Azure, pressing my foot against the edge of the walkway. Rushing in alone on an enemy like this was almost certainly suicide, but purple magic was a unique and unexpected magic type. If anyone had a shot at breaking through his defenses, it was me.

I launched myself, throwing myself into the air with the flight spell. The wind breezed through my hair, and for a moment, the knot in my stomach seemed to disappear. I wound up my arms, ready to strike. I aimed for the neck, legitimately attempting to decapitate Necron. It would take all my strength to keep the Demon Sabers going, but it was the best shot we'd had the entire bout.

Inches away from him though, I discovered how futile my battle was. Up close, I felt a sense of vertigo just at the scale Necron really stood at. However, the trouble came when his wing shifted. It caught me from behind, scooping me up in one smooth action and twisting me far off target. I struggled to recover, swinging blade and magic as best I could, but I was swinging blind. I may have clipped his wing as it passed over me, but I had no way to be sure. I was descending quickly, seconds away from impacting the ruins' side.

When I finally did crash, I crashed hard. A chunk of pillar fell with me as I landed back on the pathway. All the hope I had moments ago faded in an instant. How did he know I was coming up behind him? He shouldn't have known I was coming until I had already dug into his skin! I prayed he didn't have mind reading powers along with his 'fuck the world over' powers.

Just then, someone moved from down the hall, jogging to me, holding his arm. "Trevor!" Zidane said, coming to my side. He used his good arm and help pull me up. "What the hell happened to you?"

"Tried to outflank him," I admitted. "Didn't work, obviously. It was like he has eyes in the back of his head."

"Maybe not," Zidane said. "I noticed something when I fell last time. Look out to the arena, just between the archways."

I looked out, carefully avoiding Necron's potential gaze. At first, the wall seemed perfectly normal, just part of the scenery. "Zidane, I don't get it."

"Just give it a second. Sometimes they take a minute."

I continued watching, unsure what I was looking for. The attempt seemed worthless, until the wall blinked. I did a double take as a section of wall opened up, revealing an eyeball, scanning the coliseum. I saw only four open in that section, but with all the archways, in this place, there could have been hundreds of eyes. Perhaps even close to a thousand! I had to stop myself from crying out at the bizarre set pieces.

"What…the fuck?" I said. "But… but I never noticed those in the game!"

"They are kind of small," Zidane offered. "Maybe you never saw them, or maybe they weren't there to begin with. Either way, they're there, and that's probably how he sees."

"That would account for him not having eyes."

"Probably," Zidane said. "Think you can find a strategy around them?"

"How?" I asked. "I've already come up with three plans so far! Everything I try fails on this guy! We're completely outclassed, and I know what's he's capable of! He's barely even tried so far! He could have killed us outright the second we arrived! The only reason he didn't was because he probably thinks it's a waste of time! God dammit, we don't have a chance…"

I sank into my melancholy, falling against the pillar for support. What were we going to do? Necron's incredible magical ability was one thing, but we couldn't even flank or surprise him now! Did we ever have a chance? The world was going to be destroyed just because I couldn't come up with a winning strategy. I wasn't strong enough and everyone was going to die! I'd never see Kaiten or my father again! Why the hell did I ever have to be brought into Gaia in the first place?

"Trevor, stop!" Zidane said. "If you give up now then we really don't have a chance! Besides, if we hide behind the archways, he can't see us! The eyes only watch inside the arena, but outside, he's vulnerable. Maybe that's why he hasn't left the coliseum! Maybe he can't risk being blind like that! We still have a chance, see?"

I had given up so fast that I had completely overlooked that. So far, Necron had only attacked when we leapt into the arena, or when we made ourselves visible from the archways. Maybe if we all swarmed him at once, breaking from cover at the same time, then we could take him by surprise.

Plans raced through my mind again. Strategies, techniques and tactics all came one after the other. Perhaps we could break off into four, spreading ourselves throughout the coliseum. If we timed our attacks right, we could pummel Necron into submission one right after the other without giving him a chance to recover or counter us. Now, how would we go about timing it?

"By the way," Zidane said. "Do you still have those potions I gave you? My arm is killing me."

It was only then that I noticed my own injuries. Nothing was broken, but my arm and side were torn and bruised. I pulled two Hi-Potions out of my pouch and handed one to Zidane. We raised our vials in a mock toast and down the vile liquid. It tasted just like good medicine always does: terrible.

Later, after my skin healed and Zidane's shoulder popped back into place, we were off, searching through the ruins to find the others. Our goal was the same as before: find the others, make something up, then profit. We spent what felt like an hour just climbing through the hallways, running up the occasional staircase, and always avoiding direct exposure to the arena, lest Necron's thousands of eyes see us.

"This would be a lot easier if we had known this would happen," Zidane said, possibly as a dig at me.

"Yeah, well it'd also be easier if he were a beached whale," I countered. "Or a wounded bunny. Or hell, even a zaghnol! You remember how hard we had to fight against that thing in the Festival of the Hunt?"

Zidane laughed at the memory. "Yeah. I thought I had him. I was the one who cut his throat open."

"Yeah, I thought you had him at first too. Still, imagine how much stronger we are now. I could take a zaghnol down with a single Demon Saber. And I guess you'd have a slightly easier time too."

"Are you kidding? I'd kick your ass next time around!"

"Alright, I guess you could try. You do still have a few months before the next Festival of the Hunt to train. Who knows? You might actually pose a challenge."

Zidane just chuckled. "I'll make you eat those words."

"Zidane! Trevor!" came Dagger's happy voice. We looked up and saw her running towards us with Vivi just behind her. She leapt at us, grabbing us both in a tight hug around the neck. She settled down after a moment and grinned. "I'm so glad you're both alive! Trevor, we weren't sure where you went after you got hit!"

"I lucked out," I said. "Flew to the top of the coliseum and tried to attack Necron from behind. As you can tell, it didn't work."

"We saw that," Dagger said. "When we saw Necron flex his wing, we saw someone crash down here and we went to investigate. I'm glad you're alright."

"Thanks to this guy and his potions," I pointed to Zidane.

"What about Freya?" Zidane asked. "Has anyone seen her since her first attack?"

"I'm right here," Freya said, emerging from an archway further down the hallway.

The party rejoiced at our dragon knight returning at last. Now we were all together as one team and we had a better chance at devising a steady plan. I considered certain strengths, and I knew our flight spells were still active, so there were plenty of variables we could use. However, we would have to share Intel first.

"Where did you go Freya?" Dagger asked. "We looked all over for you!"

"I landed high in the coliseum," she said. "I healed myself of injury, but I took time out to study our enemy. We knew nothing about him and unfortunately our 'resident expert' knew very little. No offense Trevor."

"Meh."

"But what I can tell is that Necron is blind!"

The news shocked Dagger and Vivi while Zidane and I just traded glances. We would fill them in further in a moment.

"He's blind?" Vivi asked. "But… how can he attack us then?"

"Sensory awareness," Freya answered. "Everything he does is a reaction to something. He feels where we attack from and counters accordingly. Perhaps if we moved more swiftly, or flew, he would have a harder time catching us."

"But what about my magic?" Vivi asked. "He hit me directly with his spell!"

"It's your staff. It chimes every time you cast a spell. We've had conversation with this beast, so we know he can hear. That's my guess as to how he knew where our mages were."

"Not bad," Zidane said. "You certainly didn't waste your time, did you?"

"I try not to."

While the others talked, I couldn't help but chance a peek at Necron. He still floated silently in the center of the arena, eyes now painfully obvious along the walls. However, I noticed that several of them were looking in our direction. Even Necron's face seemed to turn towards us. Chills ran down my spine for a moment as my fears were brought to life when Necron began to raise his tendrils high into the air. I didn't even try to process it. I just shouted one word…

"SCATTER!"

I took off down the hallway as quickly as I could, grabbing Dagger and Vivi by the wrist as I passed them. Zidane and Freya didn't question me and took off as well. We made it about fifteen feet before the entire coliseum shook. Rock and dust flew everywhere again as the tendrils bore through the ruins like a knife through a cake. We had barely dodged out of the way in time, leaving another twenty-foot gash in the pathway behind us.

"He knows where we are!" Zidane shouted, taking the lead. "Keep running! We need to lose him!"

However, as we ran, a thought came to mind. How did Necron find us when we had been so careful? It only took a moment of thought before I came up with the answer. "Freya, how did you get down here?"

"What?" she blurted out. "This is not the time!"

"It's important!" I yelled back. "How did you get here? How did you travel to us?!"

"I flew down from the top of the ruins. Why?"

"Inside or outside of the arena?"

"Inside! What's this about?"

Zidane seemed to come to the same conclusion as I did. "That's how Necron knew how to find us! He's not completely blind! He has eyes all inside the arena!"

Freya's eyes widened as she realized what she had done. She slowed her run to a jog and the rest of us followed suit. "What are you doing?" Zidane demanded. "Keep running! You're not getting tired, are you?!"

"This is my fault," Freya admitted painfully. "I'm responsible for this. I'm sorry, I didn't know!"

"Don't worry about it," I told her. "Let's just get somewhere safe and—"

The shockwave that blasted through the coliseum was enough to shut me up, but what really did it was the sudden fear, seeing the tendrils crashing through the pathway not five feet away. If we hadn't slowed down when we did, we would have all been killed in one fell swoop! My knees buckled as I tried not to think about how close I had just come to dying.

The tendrils pulled away again, leaving another gap before us. It wasn't too far to jump with the flight spell, but Necron had opened another part of our hiding spot. He saw us pulling back into cover under the higher pathways above. Given how quickly and accurately he could cast his magic, staying in the open was a death wish.

"Get back!" Zidane said, pulling Dagger closer to the center of the walkway. "Everyone, back!"

**It is pointless to resist any further. Your fates are sealed.**

Necron brought his tendrils underneath the pathway in an arc, swinging up, no doubt to finish us off in one attack. His tendriled arm moved in slow motion, like a whip flailing through the air. I looked around for a staircase, or something to help us get out. The second we broke from cover, he would just blast us with magic. How the hell were we getting out of this one?

"Get ready to run!" Freya shouted. She ran to an archway and looked down at the approaching tendrils.

"Freya, what are you doing?!" Zidane yelled.

"This is my fault! Get out of here and find a way to stop him!"

As the tendrils neared, Freya leapt. Though it fought against instinct, I ran, along with the others, to see her descent. She was insane! There was no way she could survive the fall, even if she did survive the impact against the tendrils. We watched in horror as Freya shrank into a red-coated little dot below.

XXXXXXXX

Yeah… another cliffhanger. Who would've thought I'd pull one of those off?

Sorry that the chapter ended this way. I intended it to be much longer, but I was already way behind and didn't want to keep you guys waiting forever. Besides, I didn't want the fight to get too long, lest you guys get bored of it. And I kinda like ending it here. Partially because seems like a fitting place and partially because I'm a cliffhanger-loving douchebag. XD

So, I hope you guys enjoyed the results of the contest, congrats if your candidate won! I was surprised it ended up the way it did, with the white mages trading off, the attacking mages, the thief/bandit (which are basically the same anyway XD), and the knights. Weird coincidence, huh? XD And look forward to next month where the team finished the fight! It'll be shorter than this, so I won't be late. :P If I am, then I give you permission to torch my apartment. ^^

-Krimson


	13. My Final Strike

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's notes: And here we have part 2 of what was supposed to be a 1 part fight. I didn't have to add any filler or extend the chapter at all here. What you see was supposed to be included last month. Now you can see why I had to cut the last chapter off when I did. There's no way I would've finished in time. XD

In other wonderful news, I updated on time! Yes, it's very, very late on the 9th, and some of it isn't fully edited yet (I'll finish on the morning of the 10th), but I like it. I like it a lot! I can tell, this is gonna be one of those chapters I go back to in months and still get adrenaline reading, just like the Blood and Nightmare chapters, or the Project Soulforge chapters. XD

Ah, but I'll shut up for now. Just enjoy the fight. 2 chapters until the end of Shattered Mind. ;)

Chapter 13- My Final Strike.

XXXXXXXX

"_Get back!" Zidane said, pulling Dagger closer to the center of the walkway. "Everyone, back!"_

_**It is pointless to resist any further. Your fates are sealed.**_

_Necron brought his tendrils underneath the pathway in an arc, swinging up, no doubt to finish us off in one attack. His tendriled arm moved in slow motion, like a whip flailing through the air. I looked around for a staircase, or something to help us get out. The second we broke from cover, he would just blast us with magic. How the hell were we getting out of this one?_

"_Get ready to run!" Freya shouted. She ran to an archway and looked down at the approaching tendrils._

"_Freya, what are you doing?!" Zidane yelled._

"_This is my fault! Get out of here and find a way to stop him!"_

_As the tendrils neared, Freya leapt. Though it fought against instinct, I ran, along with the others, to see her descent. She was insane! There was no way she could survive the fall, even if she did survive the impact against the tendrils. We watched in horror as Freya shrank into a red-coated little dot below._

"FREYA!" Zidane cried out.

"She's dead," I said to myself. "There's no way she can pull this off!"

Freya's plan was doomed from the very start. She fell directly to the tendrils as they rose to meet her. We could see her channeling her magic, but what happened next really surprised us. As she swung her blade, she called out for a Lancer, however, she got much more than she expected out of the assault. As the polearm dug into Necron's tendrils, a bright orange explosion followed it, finishing the spell in a flash of glory. Necron was so shocked that he pulled his arm back, interrupting his swing. Even more, Freya seemed to hurt him! She landed on his tendrils and leapt away, flying back towards us, unharmed, but just as confused as the rest of us.

Zidane reached out and grabbed Freya, bringing her in to safety. "That was amazing!"

"How did you do that?" Dagger asked. "You actually hurt him!"

"I… I don't know," Freya answered. "I just felt this power surge through me, and I thought I heard Steiner's voice! It was like he was there!"

"That attack," I said. "That was Climhazzard, wasn't it?"

"It must have been," Freya admitted. "But why would that be? Is this some new magic, like our flight?"

Everyone turned to me for answers. If they had done that when we were still traveling, I might not have minded, but now that I had no answers to give, it was slightly annoying. "Don't look at me," I said. "This is as new to me as it is you." Maybe I should've kept my mouth shut about being from Earth.

"Could it be because Steiner gave you his strength?" Dagger asked. "Maybe you absorbed his magic as well."

"That has to be it!" Zidane said. "And the rest of us should have the skills and magic of the others!"

"That might explain why Vivi's magic is so effective," I offered. "He's had no problem hurting Necron the first time he cast Thundaga."

"But what about Dagger?" Vivi asked. "If my magic's stronger, then shouldn't her white magic? She bonded with Eiko."

"Actually, it's been a lot easier to cast," Dagger said. "I haven't had to use anything stronger than a Cura for the whole fight."

We all stared at her for a moment. Even I thought she had used Curaga once or twice. Possibilities arose in my mind, but so did the realization that Necron still knew where we were. In the distance, I could see his massive frame recovering from Freya's surprise attack and was preparing to lay into us again.

"Guys, we should move!" I said.

We didn't have time to even think. Necron was already casting his next spell. The twin rings around his head and shoulders began to spin as blue lightning charged around them. They channeled and condensed into a sphere in front of Necron's face. There was enough time to gasp, but no more than that. The energy disappeared in an instant, and I heard a deep crackling behind me, like dry wood burning in a fire. I turned and saw the sphere, standing as tall as myself, not two feet away.

_Go…_

We all bolted at the sight of the thing, everyone going in their own direction. Zidane and Dagger ran down one end of the hall while Vivi and I ran together the other way. I didn't see where Freya wound up, but seconds later, it didn't even register to me. The world erupted and the air burned as the Neutron Ring blast behind us. The pressure wave knocked us loose from the floor, and I tumbled through the hallways, bouncing against the occasional pillar or piece of ceiling. More than once, I felt Vivi brush against me, but it wasn't until my shoulder cracked against a wall that I finally stopped. Vivi avoided damage by crashing into me, but it just made my own pain worse.

I landed in a heap of pain and twisted limbs. Vivi pushed himself up, bleeding from the face. My entire right arm was numb, and I couldn't move it. I flopped my way up and grabbed hold of my wrist. My shoulder had dislocated itself in the impact, and with Dagger further down the hall, possibly in a similar position. I was stuck with the bum arm for now.

"Trevor!" Vivi cried out, ignoring his own injuries. "Are you alright?!"

"Don't worry about me," I said. I held my arm, trying to ignore the throbbing pain racing through my shoulder. Why didn't I pay more attention to TV and learn how to fix this? I saw it happen on ER all the time when I was a kid! I had better play it safe. "We need to find the others. I can't move my arm and I need Dagger to fix it."

"They're down there," he said. "If we run, we can—"

I noticed a sharp blue spike appearing between us then, cold and with frost pouring off of it. I couldn't just push Vivi because of my arm, but I could leave him to absorb the damage, so I reached out and kicked him as gently as I could while pushing him away. He looked shocked as he flew away, but as I dodged the other way, I saw a massive ice crystal break through the floor between us.

I landed on my good shoulder, avoiding the Blizzaga completely, but I didn't have time to relax. The floor glowed red underneath me, and I had already seen what Necron's Firaga did to people. I didn't even pick myself up, instead pushing with one arm as my legs rushed behind me. It was an awkward crawl that saved me as the erupting fire started to cook my legs. I managed to run before the damage became too severe, but my skin was still red and peeling.

Standing was painful, but I still managed it, using a pillar for support. In the distance, Necron was casting third tier spells, one after another, with unnatural ease and casting speed. Vivi dodged a Thundaga, running away from me further down the hallway. I could also see other spells being cast throughout the ruins, as if at random. Necron was able to cover a frightening amount of ground with the short rest time between spells. I squinted at some small figures I saw in the distance. Freya was dancing away form a set of Thundaga spells, and Dagger was running away from a Firaga. Suddenly, I realized that these spells were never meant to finish us, or even to hurt us. Though random in target, the torrent of spells served a purpose.

We were being separated from each other.

Upon realizing it, I turned to the hallway and saw Vivi, shrinking in the distance. He was being chased by a thunderbolt, creating a cacophony so loud that any shouts would be drowned out. I started to run, trying to recover the team before it was too late. Unfortunately, Necron was one step ahead of us again. The clouds shifted all around us, and the coliseum became the eye of the storm. Power seemed to bleed out of the very air around us, and I knew it was coming. I just had to hope it wasn't as bad as it could have been.

**Your time has ended. The Grand Cross shall see you to your graves!**

In the game, planets would realign to show off just how powerful this spell was. I couldn't see any shifting planets, but the sudden blast of energy certainly felt like the end of the world. I was wracked with a blinding rush of nausea, a crippling migraine, boiling blood and a sensation that my skin was made of sandpaper, dry and grinding against itself. When I opened my eyes, the world had gone completely dark. Somehow, Necron had also darkened the sky, cutting out the light. I fell to my knees to feel around, when I realized that the sky hadn't changed; I had gone blind.

"Guys?!" I cried out. Worry turned to panic as I crawled along the floor, hugging to each pillar as if it were my only lifeline. I shuffled down where I thought Vivi had gone, but with no way to see, I could have walked over an edge and would never notice until it was too late. Each inch forward was terrifying and could have meant falling to my death or exposing myself to Necron's magic, but I had to press on. Crawling was the safest thing for me to do now.

"Vivi!" I tried again. "Dagger! I need you!" Without the potions bag, Dagger was the only one who could save me, but blind as I was, she would have to find me. "Zidane!? Freya!?"

There was a roar of unleashed fury and torment echoing within the arena. I recognized Freya's voice, but I could only guess at where she was as her voice bounced off the coliseum walls.

"I'm gonna kill you, you rotting son of a whore!" Freya screamed. I heard her voice travel away, like she was launching herself at Necron. What really got me though were her words. For the few months I had known her, I had never heard her say anything remotely like that. I was almost sure she had never said the word "whore" in her life. I heard combat as she jumped around Necron's form and guessed she had been afflicted by a berserker spell. Alarming as it was, with her agility, we may have lucked out for a change.

"Trevor!" came Vivi's voice in the distance. He sounded further away than I thought. I cursed being blind and swore to always keep a vial of eye drops with me at all times after this.

"Vivi!" I cried out, rushing forward as I crawled. "Hang on! I'm coming!"

"No, STOP!"

Vivi's tone became shrill and urgent. His voice was close, but sounded so small. Curiously, I reached out, gingerly feeling around the air, until I came in contact with a short steeple hat. Vivi took a step closer so he was within arm's reach. I couldn't see him, but he felt much smaller than usual. A light bulb came on in my head after a moment.

"Vivi, did he shrink you?"

"I think so," Vivi admitted. His voice sounded like he had taken a hit of helium. He wasn't quite squeaky, but he might have passed for one of the Chipmunks. "Why? Can't you see?"

"No. I'm blind. We're gonna need Dagger to cure us. Did you see where she went?"

"I saw her run down the hallway that way."

I imagined Vivi was pointing. I didn't take the moment to remind him that I couldn't see. I was just irritated that Vivi was now in chibi-form and I didn't even get to see. I pressed my hand against Vivi's head again to judge his size. From what I could tell, he was as tall as a toddler and no doubt weighed about the same. I stood up, making sure to keep track of where he was. "Alright, I'm gonna need you to be my eyes. Think you can do that?"

"Um… I guess? How would I do that?"

"I'll just carry you on my shoulders. Walking is faster than crawling, so I'll walk along. Just make sure to keep me in the middle of the hallway and tell me if I'm about to hit a pillar or something."

"Yeah, I guess I can do that."

"Good." I lifted Vivi with only my left arm, passing him over my head and resting him at the back of my neck, carrying him piggyback style. I kept my hands on his feet for balance as we started off down the hall. "This feels familiar," I joked.

Vivi laughed, "Yeah. Grandpa used to do this for me too. Step right a little."

"I bet he'd be impressed with how strong you've gotten."

"Grandpa was…" Vivi droned off for a moment. "He was strange. I don't know what parents are supposed to be like. He always worried about how well I was growing. Go more left."

"That's something parents do. I'm just sorry you didn't get to know him longer."

"I guess it's ok," Vivi said. "I left home after he died. If I hadn't, then I wouldn't have met any of you or found out who I was."

"Vivi… you don't mean finding out you were made, right?"

"No, I meant as a person. Being created doesn't bother me anymore. I made a lot of great friends, and now I'm helping save the world!"

I had to laugh at that. "I guess we would be screwed without you."

Vivi and I shared a brief chuckle, until I felt myself walk straight into a pillar. My forehead cracked against the thick stone and I swore, rubbing my head to relieve the pain.

"Oh, uh… watch out?" Vivi offered, too little too late.

"Thanks Vivi," I muttered, feeling my way around the pillar.

I made my way in blindness for another short while. Vivi kept his eyes up and watched the hall until we were synced up well enough to walk at a brisk pace. It was still a little hair-raising for me, but Vivi was confident in his ability to lead and I trusted the little guy. Besides, time was of the essence. We could still hear Freya crashing into Necron, keeping him busy in the distance.

"Is she still going wild?" I asked.

Vivi had gotten comfortable resting his chin on my head. I felt him turn to look out for a moment, then rest his chin on me again. "Yeah, she keeps jumping around him and Necron can't seem to hit her. His spells keep missing."

"We'll have to help her when we find Dagger and cure ourselves."

"I could cast a few spells from here!"

"Don't bother. While you're mini sized, your magic takes a hit to its potency. You'd just give our position away."

"Oh… Well, then I guess we really do have to find… wait, there she is!"

Vivi called out for Dagger, but I didn't hear her call back. I tried calling out as well and risked picking up the pace until Vivi told me to stop. We were right in front of her, he said. I confirmed it when Dagger reached out and grabbed my leg. Fears came to mind to answer Dagger's silence. Was she hurt? Was she traumatized again? And where was Zidane when he escaped with her?

I knelt down, letting Vivi slide off my back, and clasped Dagger by the shoulder. I could hear her breathing rapidly, like she was breathing in a panic. Her cheeks were wet. Was she crying? What had happened? What had we missed?

"Dagger?" I said as calmly as I could. "Are you alright? Where's Zidane?"

I heard Dagger shuffle around and felt her arm move. She shook, as if she was looking at something horrifying. I froze, wondering if Freya had been defeated and Necron was staring us down again. Vivi gasped and I instinctively turned my head to look, despite it being useless.

"Zidane!" Vivi called out. I heard small feet stamp across the hall to what I could only assume was an archway.

"What's going on?" I called out to the little mage. "What happened?"

"Zidane's hurt!" Vivi called back. "It's bad! His skin is all gray and there's a lot of blood on his chest!"

"Was it Necron?"

"I… I dunno! He isn't breathing very well…"

"Trevor…?" came a wheezy voice. "About time you showed up…"

"Zidane?" I called out. "What happened? I'm blind and Dagger isn't telling me anything."

"That's because she's silenced…"

The words were the worst I could have heard. I had foolishly hoped, blinding myself again to the obvious, that Dagger was just in shock and would calm herself down in a minute or two and cure us. However, if she was silenced, then she couldn't properly heal us, or cure our status ailments.

"My skin turned gray after that massive blast," Zidane began. "Dagger tried to heal me, but it burned my skin off…"

"Burned your skin?" It was miraculous that we had run into so few monsters on our trek throughout the world, but for the longest time, I thought not having to deal with status effects was a boon. Now it turned out that it had left us completely unprepared for blindness and silences. I would have had a laugh at the wretched irony if we weren't so likely to die. The only things that could cure us were specific potions, or Dagger's Panacea spell. However, the potions were all destroyed when Necron smashed them, and I didn't see Dagger using that spell anytime soon.

"Well shit," I said. "Listen, we've all been hit with status effects. Zidane, I'm not a hundred percent on this, but I'm pretty sure you were hit with a zombie status."

"Zombie?" he repeated. "What's it do?"

"Reverses white magic effects. Basically, Cures will kill you and potions will poison you."

"Then what can we do? There's no way to cure ourselves and Freya's out of control out there!"

I had to think! There was always a way out of these things, but when I had to calm down during the game, there was always a pause button and a recent save point. Necron smashed into a distant section of building, reminding me that we could die at any second and I would have no way to escape, or even notice.

_No,_ I told myself. _Calm down! What would Kaiten say?_

Kaiten would tell me to stop bitching and fight my way out, but that idea might need pause. So far, our fighting force was down to a leader who couldn't be healed, a blind swordsman and not the cool kind, a pint-sized mage with only half his power, and a mute healer. I didn't count Freya since she was out of control and there was a risk she would attack us if we got too close. What could we do then?

"Trevor?" Zidane stirred. "Do you still have those potions I gave you?"

My hand patted the small bag at my hip and my heart skipped a beat. I had potions left! We had a chance! We could…

The excitement left as quickly as it came. I remembered I only had one Hi-Potion and an elixir, nothing to cure any of our status effects. The elixir would probably even kill Zidane. "I have them," I said. "But they won't so us any good."

"Maybe not!" Zidane said. "You still have an Elixir left, right? Elixirs are supposed to be the strongest kind of medicine in the world! Second only to the very strongest white magic. Dagger's been through a lost voice before, so maybe if we give her an Elixir, she can fight through it and cast Esuna on herself. Then she can cure the rest of us!"

The idea was unlikely as hell, but what did we have to lose? It would never work in the game, but if my adventures had taught me anything, it was that this place was much more than a game. And Dagger had gone through this before when she lost her voice. Maybe she could fight through it enough. I reached into my bag and pulled out the two remaining vials I had, unable to tell which was which.

"Dagger, you ready?" I asked, holding them out for her. Her hand hesitantly touched mine, grabbing the vial on the right. "Hey. You can do this, alright?"

I like to think Dagger nodded at me as she pulled the vial away. I heard the cork drop on the floor as Dagger downed the entire vial. There was a weak pant as Dagger finished and picked up her staff. However, I didn't hear the familiar chime of magic channeling through her staff. I waited for what felt like half a minute, but no sound came from her at all, voice or magic.

"Dagger?" I called out. I put the remaining vials on the ground and reached for her. I could hear sharp gasps of breath coming from her. Was she crying?

"Dagger, it's alright," Vivi padded up to comfort her. "We'll think of something. Just please… don't cry…"

Dagger continued to cry her silent sobs. Even I felt a bit disheartened. I was officially out of ideas. Maybe one of the others below had an Echo Screen on them, or maybe we could find one from the ruined bag that Zidane had dropped, but the chances of either were miniscule at best. I dropped to my knees, spent and out of ideas once again.

A few floors below us, on the opposite side of the coliseum, there was a thunderous crash, as if someone had been smashed through the floor. The dull sounds of combat quickly faded as the last few chunks of floor fell to the endless pit below.

**Your hapless friend has fallen. The rest of you would do best to stay put as I finish your world.**

Freya was down? Was she dead? I scratched at my eyes, desperate for answers, but there was only darkness. "Guys, where's Freya?! Can you see her?"

"I can't see…" Zidane struggled. "I can barely move."

There was a quick shuffling of feet, running towards the archway. "I see… I think I see her hat…" Vivi said. "I… It's the only thing I can see. There's a bunch of rubble out there too…"

So that was it. We had no more fighting force. No one had to say anything. The silence amongst us told me that we all came to the conclusion at the same time. Is this really how the world ended? We had come so close. So fucking close! Memories of our travels rushed back to me as I fought back tears of despair.

"It's not right!" Vivi cried. The little mage's sniffles broke my heart and I knew how he felt. "We can't lose now! Everyone will die! We're not even that badly hurt! It isn't fair!"

"Vivi…" Zidane tried to calm him, but he said nothing more. Nothing came to my mind either. I didn't think there was any way we could get out this time.

"No, I won't let it end this way!" Vivi shouted. "I just can't… AAAAAHHHHHH!"

I heard Vivi channeling a spell. If he attacked Necron in his rage, he would only give away our position and we would be crushed in seconds. But for a moment, I saw a dim yellow light. It broke through my darkness so suddenly that I had to shut my eyes to protect them. I blinked slowly, and the world came back to me in a blur. I saw Zidane, still gray and bleeding on the ground. Dagger grabbed her throat and uttered a raspy gasp. Even Vivi had grown back to his proper size. I couldn't help feel a little disappointed at that since I didn't get to see him in chibi mode, but at least we could fight!

"Zidane!" Dagger cried out. "Hold on… I'll fix everything!"

Dagger's magic channeled through her staff, but before she healed him, she cast Esuna, curing his zombie status. Another spell had him good as new and standing with us again.

"How did that happen?" Zidane asked, voicing everyone's thoughts. "Did someone come and cure us?"

Everyone exchanged glances, but I looked at Vivi curiously. He was just as confused as the rest of us, but I was so sure that the first thing I had seen was him casting a spell. Freya had used Steiner's technique earlier, so it was a safe bet that the same thing had happened to the rest of us. Vivi had absorbed Quina's energy, so that meant he had used one of Quina's healing spells.

"It was Vivi," I said after a moment. The little mage's eyes widened while the others regarded him peculiarly. "That spell he used was Blue Magic. Angel's Snack. It cures most status effects, like Dagger's silence and my darkness. You not only have your arsenal of spells. You should be able to tap into any of Quina's spells… bizarre as some of them are."

"Really?" Vivi asked, his eyes wide with hope. "Wait… I don't have to eat any monsters, do I?

"Uh… I guess not?"

"Good. Quina freaks me out when he eats. It's like his jaw unhinges itself…" Vivi shuddered at the thought.

"The point is," I began, "that we should all be able to use new powers. We might even be able to combine them with other attacks we already have, like what Freya did earlier." I thought about my own powers. Kaiten and I were near-perfect reflections of each other in so many ways, so what would be different about me now? My hand graced my short sword's pommel as I considered the possibilities. "But we'll need to attack hard and fast. Work as one and make sure Necron never has a chance to track us. He reacts impossibly fast, so we need one person to be hitting him from behind as he's winding up an attack."

"Not to mention Freya," Zidane said. He looked up at Necron, but there was no way to tell how far along the massive demi-god was in his machinations. It could have been days, or minutes. "We can't wait. Dagger, we'll have to leave Freya to you. Can you make it down to her on your own?"

"I'm not completely helpless," the queen smirked. "Not as long as I can cast my magic anyway. I'll be fine."

"Just don't get caught up in anything. He nearly finished us with that last attack. Get Freya and keep yourself in cover for the rest of the fight. Heal us when you can, but don't stick your neck out when you don't have to."

"I'm a big girl Zidane," she joked. "You worry more about yourself. I mean, you'll be out there, and you've seen how strong this monster is. I might not be able to save you if you get too badly hurt."

"Aww… you _do_ care about me!" Zidane leaned in, smiling in Dagger's face. The young queen quickly blushed and turned away.

"W-well, ye—I mean, of course I do," Dagger stuttered. "You're a good friend and I'd hate to see you get hurt."

Dagger chirped in a moment of surprise when Zidane wrapped his hands around her waist from behind. His head rested on her shoulder and he held her close. Blushing a deep scarlet, Dagger placed her hands on Zidane's, holding him as he held her. "After we get back," Zidane whispered, "I'll take you on a real date. Dinner. My treat. I know a good place for stew in Lindblum."

Dagger giggled. "Zidane, I'm queen. I'll have my chefs make us something nice."

"Hey guys?" I called out. Zidane and Dagger noticed Vivi and me watching them again and awkwardly separated, blushing and acting like nothing had happened. "Sorry to interrupt the cute couple moment but, you know, end of the world and all…"

"Yes, of course!" Dagger said quickly as she turned, hiding her face. "I'll go find Freya. Just watch out for yourselves."

Zidane grinned at her, watching her as she left, though I had my own guesses where his eyes were aimed.

"Can we really do this?" Vivi asked. "I mean, we're not really better off than we were before…"

My short swords twirled in my hands as I answered. "Not true. We have the strength of ten people in five bodies. I bet if we pressed him, we can hit Necron twice as hard as before. Push him back, keep him off guard."

"Trevor and I will fly through the arena to attack," Zidane said. "Vivi, as soon as you cast a spell, run away and keep your location hidden. Fly to a new floor if you have to. Just stay to the outside so his eyes don't see you."

"Alright," Vivi said. He took a deep breath and let it out. His Mace of Zeus seemed to sparkle, already flowing with magical energy. His eyes had a tint of determination I had only seen in his trance form. Focused, raw with pure Black Magic. This was Vivi in his prime.

"Are you guys ready?" Zidane asked. The Tower hung from his right arm, but Zidane carried himself differently than before. He had always been our leader, whether any of us wanted to admit it or not, but he seemed stronger, more forceful. His arms pulsed with muscle as he leaned against an archway, bracing himself. Zidane was not one to hold back when he really wanted to get something done, but now, losing didn't even occur to him. We were going to do this, no matter the cost.

As for myself, I had to look back at where this all started. Did I ever believe I would get this far? That I would accomplish so many things? That I could grow so much? I had certainly dreamed about moments like these before, but now I was living it. I had started this as a thin, unmotivated college student, just going along as if this was all a joke I could tell my friends later. Now, I was living it, stronger, smarter, with all the bravado my body could handle.

Azure and Crimson glowed purple, as hungry for victory as I was! We were going to finish this, and dammit, we were going to look good doing it!

"Let's go."

Zidane leapt with a roar. I jumped as well, with Vivi's staff chiming as he charged a spell. I extended a pair of Demon Sabers, but held them back. If my magic really was combined with Kaiten's, then I would probably have a few more tricks I could use. A few came to mind, but I would have to wait for Zidane's attack so our plan of attacking one after the other could go off.

Zidane carried the attack and struck first. He reached within his newfound abilities and grabbed hold of Amarant's magic. "No Mercy!" he cried as he soared over Necron's shoulder. Necron moved to negate the attack, parrying the magic somewhat with his shoulder. It hit, but didn't do much good. What it did do though, was leave him open for further attack.

**Are you fools so willing to die by my hand? Very well. Then this shall—**

Necron was interrupted as a Flare went off in his face. From where I flew, it seemed to singe his face and even some of his mouth. Necron didn't growl in anger or even show surprise. Instead, he tried to refocus on where the next attack was likely to come from: me. My plan would have to wait. I'd need to throw away my attack just to survive.

By combining my Demon Saber and Kaiten's Arc, I could fling two massive bands of energy at Necron, slicing into his skin as they exploded. I brought both arms back and let loose the attack, still flying for over his shoulder, opposite Zidane's trajectory. Necron braced himself, but faltered as a fourth attack startled him.

An arc of blue light lanced through the air, piercing Necron's chest and the vestigial arms he kept crossed in front. They unfolded and fell limp at his sides, where they remained. It seemed that he had lost control over them long ago, or perhaps he never had control over them. Either way, as the Holy climaxed with an eruption in Necron's chest, my Demon Arcs cut deep into Necron's skin and exploded.

As Zidane came in for another pass, I looked back and saw Dagger, running again and nearing Freya, but keeping an eye on us. She really was good at multi-tasking. I hit the far wall and bounced back, this time coming in with twin Explosions capped on my blades.

The hits just kept coming. A Thundaga crashed into Necron's face, blinding him with bright light. As I passed over his shoulder, I slammed my blades together, unloading the energy forward in a massive Whirlwind. A cyclone of energy rushed by, smashing Necron where his ear would have been. Zidane spun his blades about, landing a combo as he passed by. The two of us were on a collision course, but Zidane already had an idea for that.

"Trevor! Stick your leg out to your side!"

I did, just as we met in mid air. We had so nearly hit, but Zidane's tail wrapped around my ankle. We had fought together enough that I had a guess at what he wanted to try. With the added momentum, I spun once and kicked out towards Necron. Zidane let go and went flying again, rebounding the other way.

Meanwhile, the change in momentum sent me closer to the walls. As Zidane went in with another series of slashes, starting with a Demi Shock to cover his start. I landed on the platforms and turned at once. Both blades charged up as I jumped again, this time aiming directly for Necron's face.

The enormous demi-god did everything he could to deflect us, but every time he wound up an attack, someone else would hit him. A Firaga from Vivi followed Zidane's flurry, and I let loose an Arc Storm, charging a pair of Demon Sabers as I aimed for the empty sockets where his eyes were supposed to be. Necron continued to keep a cool head though, and cast a spell my way.

Suddenly, the air around me got very cold. I had half a second to notice what was going on, just as the air around me froze. The Blizzaga hit hard, chilling me in an instant, then shattering moments later. The shards of ice pelted my body, causing further damage, and I lost control of my flight.

I smacked into Necron's face awkwardly bouncing off, just out of range for me to hit him. Another Thundaga from Vivi kept Necron from killing me on the spot, but I had to get away. I tried to use the flight spell to move, but without something to bounce off of, I was just an easy target. Where was Zidane when I needed him?

Disadvantaged as I was, I could still attack though. I just charged my short swords and rained Arcs all along Necron's body. The distractions from the others were only doing so much though and he was starting to learn to work through the pain. He focused on me again and raised his tendrils to strike. I held out some Explosion capped blades and held them out. Necron was going to hit me, but I was gonna bite back just as hard.

Suddenly, something grabbed me around the waist and pulled me away, avoiding the oversized slap. I was flying backwards towards the walls again, reaching safety, or at least as much as we could find in this wretched place.

"Are you alright?"

I looked back and saw Freya holding me. She looked healthy and of sane mind once more. "I'm going to hit the walls and ricochet. Are you with me?"

Crimson and Azure still had Explosions on them. I could do a hell of a lot of damage with them still. I positioned my legs to absorb the impact against the wall. "I've got your back!"

Freya nodded and turned us both around. We hit the same pillar so hard that it cracked under the pressure. We kicked against it and flew at Necron once again. The demi-god saw us coming and the rings around his head started spinning once again. If he got another high-level spell like that off again, we wouldn't be walking away again. Thinking quickly, I slammed both of my blades together and released the energy. It was earlier than I wanted to use it, but a nice Whirlwind worked as a good distraction.

We split as we landed on Necron's shoulder. Freya attacked the wings, swinging her polearm like a grim reaper in need of a vacation. I took to the front, falling along his chest. I extended my Demon Sabers again, slashing away as I went. The blades cut deep, even getting Necron to start bleeding from several of the wounds. However, the blades only did so much against him when I reached the rings around his waist.

Necron's rings seemed to reverberate with the same energy that my purple magic put out. I tried to cut through it with my Demon Sabers, but that was like one lightsaber trying to cut through another. However, since Garland was kind enough to return Crimson and Azure to me, there was one more trick I could use.

I retracted the Demon Sabers and started running along the first ring. If the others could keep him distracted, then maybe I could destroy this thing unimpeded. I tapped into the magic already dwelling inside the blades and brought them forth. Crimson started to spark with tiny flames while Azure cried onto the ring. I stood at Necron's side and let the tears flood onto and over the sides of the ring.

I waited until the ring seemed thoroughly drenched before I backed away. Azure stopped its downpour and I raised Crimson in response. The flames along Crimson's curved blade quickly ate at the flammable liquid, burning faster and hotter than a gasoline fire. I ran the other way as the flames built up, not wanting to get caught up in the resulting explosion.

A wave of pressure threatened to knock me down, but I shifted my weight and kept my footing. I ran back to where the blast had gone off so I could examine my handiwork. Much of the run had been scorched, even broken apart. The damage overall was minimal, and overall, I had taken out only enough material to fill a bathtub. The rest of the ring itself could probably fill more than an Olympic-sized swimming pool, so the small dent didn't have the impact I would have preferred. Still, I wasn't about to give up!

I brought out a pair of Explosions and started digging. Magic seemed to radiate through it, even as damaged as it was. I was making good progress until Necron saw what I was doing and shot both a Firaga and Thundaga at me. Both attacks burned at my skin and threatened to send me into shock. I had to drop to my knees to prevent myself from falling off of the ring. My short swords lost their magic for the moment, but at least I wasn't dead. Half the ring was still in place at its thinnest section.

I thought my body was going numb for a moment, finally failing me after all I had done to it. Too bad. Not even a day old and I hadn't even broken it in yet. However, what I had mistaken for numb was actually the opposite. Feeling came back to me so quickly that I didn't properly register it. My wounds closed and the burned skin flaked free. I looked up and saw Dagger running along the hallways, dodging Necron's gaze while casting the occasional healing spell. Despite her cover, she was in this fight as much as any of us.

I stood again, glad Dagger's reaction time as good as it was. An explosion above took my attention though, and a figure cloaked in red was rushing towards me from Necron's shoulder.

"Trevor, MOVE!" Freya shouted.

I complied, running down the ring as she impacted. Her polearm cracked into the ring, combining magics again to deadly effect. "LANCING STOCK BREAK!" she cried. Her blade crossed through the ring like she was chopping a cucumber, followed by a brilliant shine of light as she fell below. The light seemed to eat away at the rest of the broken chunks, finally tearing a wide enough fissure in the ring. The entire structure began to shake and break apart, rumbling underfoot as it collapsed.

"Time to leave!" Freya called out. She had landed on the second ring, just below me. She took a running start and leapt towards the walls again. Pure magic sluiced out and swam about, alarming and unstable. I wasn't about to stay and watch this thing fall apart with me on it. "Right behind you!" I said, as I jumped after her.

As we left, the ring glowed a bright blue. The magic began to break down inside Necron's body and erupted behind us. The entire ring broke down and fell apart into pieces. The attack seemed to drain him and for the first time for the entire fight, Necron doubled over in pain. He leaned in, trying to support his massive frame on the collapsing walls all around us.

"We got him on the ropes!" Zidane shouted as he finished another flyby. "Hit him again! Finish him off!"

"Aim for the rings around his head!" Freya suggested. "If we blow those up, we just might kill him!"

"Sounds like a plan!" I agreed. I was already channeling the rest of my power into my blades. If we held back even a little, we might not finish him off. We couldn't afford to hold anything back, just like in my second fight with Damien. I looked back to the Hill of Despair, wondering for a moment if the others had woken up and were watching. _I'm almost done Kaiten. I'm getting you out of here!_

**You fools don't know what you do. To undo my work is to doom your planet to needless suffering!**

"DO IT!" Zidane roared. He leapt first, aiming for the ring closest to Necron's head. The Tower led the way for him as he unleashed everything he could muster. "THEIVING DEMI SHOCK!"

Somewhat comedic in nature, but deadly in execution, a small treasure chest materialized before Necron's neck. It opened quickly and unleashed a wave of energy. However, instead of the usual basic energy, it freed Amarant's Demi Shock. The gravity spell shot forth and hit the ring at its southernmost point, collapsing in a black hole and thundering its raw power. The ring already started to crumble under the weight of the combined magic.

As Zidane's attack finished, he landed against the point of impact and bounced away, clearing himself from the blast radius. "Vivi's still charging!" he called to us. "Don't give Necron a second to recover! GO!"

Freya looked at me as Zidane flew towards us. "Are you ready?" she asked.

"Just finished charging," I answered. "Ladies first?"

Freya smirked. "Forget it. Let's just hit him together!"

I had to chuckle. "I like the sound of that."

Freya spun her Dragon's Hair lance as I twirled Crimson and Azure. We braced against the edge of the archways and darted forth as fast as a leaf caught in a raging rapid stream.

Freya and I raced forth, side by side. She held her polearm back, as if she meant to swing it. My attack was a ranged, so I took the initiative to strike first. Chi poured into my blades, giving just about everything I could into this attack. Energy swelled within the blades, appearing as Explosions, then engorged Demon Sabers, until it was threatened to encompass even myself. I brought the blades forward and took careful aim. Even if I didn't hit my target directly, I was going to serious fuck this guy up.

"DEVIL'S CRY!"

The energy loosed itself, almost swelling to the size of a small airship! It collided with Necron's ring, right on target. Necron bellowed in pain as the wall of magic hit him. I lost sight of the ring while the magic lasted, but as the last of my energy dripped out of me, the sight cleared, I could see the ring barely hanging on.

"Not bad!" Freya grinned. "Just watch your landing for this one!"

My attack had pushed me away from Freya, so I was now flying for Necron's shoulder while Freya continued to his neck. A bright glow surrounded her as she neared, already revealing her grand attack. "SHOCKING DRAGON'S CREST!"

The magic surrounding Freya formed into a dragon's head, with her leading from inside the maw. The dragon's opened its mouth, showing his enormous fangs and killer intent. It bit down as Freya reached the ring, burying her lance deep into the ring and breaking through. The lowest section broke apart at last as the dragon condensed into nothing more than pure lightning. The attack drove home and dug into Necron's neck, not only destroying the ring, but causing the demi-god severe damage as well.

With the attack finished, Freya jumped away to the shoulder opposite mine. I gave a cheer, which she received thankfully. But we couldn't rest yet. Necron heaved his body, even as the magic bled out of his ring. It erupted and he screamed into our minds as a last, desperate plea.

"I'M READY!" Vivi's voice rang in the arena. I saw him standing in an archway, almost glowing. His clothes and hat rippled around him, as if wind were blowing by him. Whatever he had ready, it was huge.

"GET OUT OF THE ARENA!" Vivi warned. "EVERYTHING INSIDE IS GOING TO BE DESTROYED!"

"Time to go!" Freya said.

"My thoughts exactly!" I agreed.

We both ran down Necron's shaking shoulders, flying away to the relative safety of the coliseum. I took off running as I landed, making my way around where the others were regrouping. As I ran though, a bright light shimmered around me. I looked down a few levels and saw Dagger dispensing shields for everyone. I felt safer, even though I still had no idea what Vivi was going to do, but I was about to find out.

The little mage, who controlled both Black and Blue magic's, who had spent the last minute pouring his very soul into this attack, whose untold talents had never been fully realized, was about to let go of everything all at once in an attack that would put any self-respecting mage to shame.

"1000 METEORS!"

I skidded to a halt as the sky suddenly filled with burning rocks. They were smaller than his usual Meteor spell, but one was still bigger than me, and would be more than enough to decimate a town block. I watched in silent wonder as the rocks began to fall, one by one.

The meteors fell straight down through the coliseum, protecting us from everything except the heat. As strong as Dagger's barriers were, just one of these would destroy not only the barrier, but us as well. I kept my distance from the archways, but I continued to watch, transfixed, as each rock crashed into Necron at horrifying speeds.

At the end of the barrage, the air was thick with dust and clouded by heat waves. Vivi himself fell to his knees, unable to even stand after his attack. Zidane ran to his side, but Vivi was still in far better shape than Necron. The once mighty, fearsome demi-god, had been bludgeoned, beaten, sliced, blasted, crushed and had taken impacts on every square inch of his body. The rings we destroyed around his neck and waist still radiated magic, but they would be Necron's end.

**Is the will to live this strong?**

The magic retracted, returning to Necron through his rings, but it was too much. The magic overloaded, sinking back into Necron's body, but it acted more like it was attacking him. Light poured out of his frame from further leaks while lightning arced up and down his body. And then the magic around the rings burst, breaking off entire limbs! Necron's tendrils fell to the ground far below as his shoulders glowed and blew up, leaving him helpless.

**It does not matter. This is not the end.**

With his magic poisoning him, his rings gone, his body collapsing and his arena destroyed, Necron did the only thing he could left. He ran. His wings gingerly wrapped around his body and his body glowed, as if he were slipping into another dimension through a magical gate.

**I am eternal. As long as there is life and death…**

With that, the gate closed and Necron vanished. It all seemed so surreal that I wasn't sure it was happening at first. I just found my feet stepping one after the other, towards the others. They were as stunned as I was. Or, perhaps they were tired. I felt numb from head to toe again, too tired to celebrate, but aware enough of what we had really done. The full weight of it all took minutes to really sink in, but when it did, we all gushed forth in victory cries. We hugged, we laughed, and we knew we had stopped the biggest threat the world had ever faced.

This was my dream, finally realized. I was a hero! A real hero, just like I had always wanted!

"Incredible!" Dagger said for the hundredth time, and she could say it a thousand more. It wouldn't bother me in the least.

"Trevor, your attack was so strong!" Vivi laughed.

"Compared to yours, I might as well have been attacking with a dishtowel," I joked. "Vivi, that was the most amazing thing I had ever seen! I just with the others could have seen it!"

"The others!" Freya remembered. We had been so caught up in our elation and our adrenaline that they had completely slipped our minds.

"I'm sure they're fine," Zidane assured her. "But we should find them. We need to find a way out. Trevor, I believe you're the expert there."

"We get teleported out," I answered simply, not sure how it was really going to happen. At the mention of the others, my mind turned to Kaiten. He said he wanted to remain here, so he could finally be with his team again. Should I really let him get away with that? Should I just let him die, even if it was what he wanted? But what kind of friend would I be if I kept him from resting in peace with his comrades?

"Teleported?" Vivi asked. "How? By who?"

But in perfect timing, a triangular rune appeared under Vivi. I recognized it as the same rune that appeared in Mt Gulug and in Kuja's palace. He watched us for a moment, then disappeared, away to safety. There were only four of us left standing.

"Vivi!' Dagger called in surprise. "Where'd he go?"

"Back to our world, I would hope," Freya said. "Will this happen for the rest of us?"

"It should," I said, heavily distracted. The same rune appeared under Dagger and I edged myself closer to see the Hill of Despair. I could see a distant light, no doubt the same teleporting runes were saving the others as we were being saved. But what if something happened? Could the others be awake? Could Kaiten deny the teleportation? Thoughts and worries swam through my head unreasonably quickly. I turned back and saw only Zidane and Freya as Dagger warped away to Gaia. I didn't have long left, so I just made my decision in an instant.

"Guys, I have to do something," I said, turning towards the hill. "I'll see you on Gaia!"

"Trevor?" Zidane asked. "Wait, where are you going!?"

I didn't have time to answer. A rune already appeared under Freya and she started teleporting out. I could be next for all I knew. I squeezed every last ounce of strength I had into my legs and kicked off the walkway, making a beeline for the hill below.

My pulse raced, my body ached, but I would be damned if I let Kaiten die here, alone. He could hate me for the rest of his life for all I cared, but he would do it on Gaia. Damn his selfish request, I was going to save his life, even if I had to beat him to death doing it!

My fears were realized when I came within sight of the hill though. The others had already teleported away, save for one man. One last glow showed a clear image of the teleporting rune, but Kaiten had used his katanas to push himself away from it. The rune disappeared without him, and Kaiten just glared up at me, angry for coming back. He laid heavily on his side, but still found the strength to raise a katana at me. Was that supposed to deter me? Make me afraid?

I would run myself through to save him, but he was still so far away. I had to make it in time, but how could I when he was still so far? My worst fears came to life when the rune appeared under me, even as I flew. I tried to pick up the pace, crying out against the rune as a white light surrounded me, and my view began to fragment.

"NO, NO, NONONONO!" I cried. I reached my hand out beyond what was comfortable. Panic overtook me as the white light blinded me. I couldn't even see Kaiten anymore, or how close he was. "NO, PLEASE! GIVE ME A FEW MORE SECONDS!"

I could feel myself being lifted, carried out of this terrible place. A lightness overtook my body, and I began to teleport. I was the last of the heroes left. The last teleport out. The last chance to leave.

"KAITEEEEEN!"

I reached out for him and…


	14. Goodbye my Friend

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's notes: It's amazing what your characters will do if you let them roam free. This chapter ended much differently than I expected or had even planned, yet I find it's far better because of it. Characters have lives of their own, and they will surprise you from time to time if you let them. It's funny. As a writer, I have complete control over what happens to these guys and everything in the world, and sometimes, even I don't see these endings coming. Gods, I love how writing can turn out sometimes, especially with emotional twists and discoveries.

Because of the change, I've found inspiration to add in some new material, totally original to the storyline, leaving us with 2 chapters left to go!

Hope you guys like this chapter as much as I did!

Chapter 14: Goodbye My Friend.

XXXXXXXX

Wind shot by me as I fell into a bright new world. The ground rushed up to meet me and I faceplanted into it as soon as I saw it. I had way too much momentum and rolled along the ground too quickly to control myself. The teleport must have kept my velocity going. With that in mind, it was a wonder I didn't break my neck on impact.

I slapped an arm and a leg on the ground to steady myself, peering through sweat and dust. But what I saw just made my situation worse.

_CLIFF!_

I dug my fingernails into the dirt, tearing skin as rocks and roots formed bumps along the way. I squeezed my eyes shut, grunting in effort as I desperately held on. However, my feet went over the side and my entire body started to seize up on me. My hip went next, and soon I was hanging at the waist. My fate seemed sealed, but at the last second, I finally slowed. My chest slid over the edge ever so gradually, until I was just hanging by my elbows and chin. My hands were both a bloody mess, but I knew if I budged in the slightest, I would fall to my death.

I chanced a look down. A forest of tangled roots waited for me below. I had certainly arrived at the Iifa Tree, but to what end I couldn't be sure. The tree was already reacting to the merger Kuja had started, just like the madman had predicted. Roots tore themselves from the ground and flailed violently in the distance. The tree was still a thousand feet off, but with the roots all around us in every direction, nowhere was really safe. None of them were any danger at the moment, but if I didn't move, there was a good chance I could soon get squashed by one.

The others had all arrived safely, and apparently in better shape than I had. They were all standing around on the top of the path that I had crashed into. Amarant was the first to run to me, followed by Steiner. "Hang on," Amarant said, grabbing me by one arm. Steiner grabbed my other arm and the two of them helped me up. My knees buckled as I finally found solid ground underneath them.

"Thanks guys," I wheezed.

"Is everyone alright?" Zidane asked.

"Yeah," Dagger answered. "But looks what's happening to the tree!"

"So, Kuja was right. The Iifa Tree is starting its violent reaction."

"What's gonna happen?" Eiko pressed, wrapping her arms around Zidane's legs.

"I dunno, but this doesn't look good."

As the others watched the tree thrash about, I had a moment of recollection. Mikoto said we didn't have a million to one chance of getting out of the tree alive, and yet, here we were. True, I had briefly died along the trip, but I got better. And yet, something bothered me. Looking around, the weight in the bottom of my stomach grew, until the stress of the moment felt like it would burst inside of me.

"Guys?" I asked slowly. "Where's Kaiten?"

Everyone's heads swiveled while their eyes darted about. I counted, and recounted, and recounted again. There were only nine of us. There was no tenth fighter. Frantically, I pushed through the group, desperately looking for my friend. He wasn't on the pathway at all. Thinking he could have fallen to the roots below, I ran to both edges of the platform, scanning as quickly as I could.

There was no sign of him.

Kaiten wasn't here. Had I really failed to pull him out of that hell? Was he stuck there until he died? I lost my footing and fell to my hands and knees. I wasn't fast enough. If I had just had a few more seconds… Not even that! If I just had one, maybe two more seconds, I could have grabbed him and pulled him out with me! _That stupid bastard! He didn't have to stay behind! If he had just stayed on his teleport rune…_

"Trevor?" Zidane said, coming to comfort me. "Are you okay?"

"Kaiten, he…" I started to say. I pulled my head into my knees, digging my fingernails into my arms. "I couldn't save him. I wasn't fast enough."

"He's not?" Zidane asked, finally realizing the missing party member. "I'm sorry Trevor… But he helped save the world! I didn't know him very well, but Kaiten was a hero!"

"Yes, he was," Dagger offered. "When we get back, I'll make sure his exploits are honored within all of Alexandria. Maybe, we can even construct a statue in his honor!"

"Should we save this?" Amarant reminded us harshly. "Those roots are going berserk and we have no idea when they'll reach us."

Of all people though, it was Freya who came to my defense. "And until then, we're stranded here, surrounded by more roots which could go berserk at any time, so why don't you let Trevor have a moment and we'll see if we can flag down an airship. The Lindblum Air Fleet is still flying above."

Amarant was right. I didn't have time for a pity party, but I couldn't bring myself to do anything else. Not to mention, the others didn't know Kaiten nearly as well as I did. They had no idea what I felt like. For a long time, Kaiten had been a part of me. He was like the brother I was supposed to have. I wasn't sure if I should have been angrier at these guys trying to comfort me, at Kaiten for staying behind, or at myself for failing to catch him. Right now, they all seemed like good targets. He was gone, and there was nothing I could do about it.

But there was someone else who could.

I pushed the others away and shouted, no longer caring how crazy I looked. "KUJA! I know you're alive! Bring Kaiten back! Just use one more teleport!" I was only met with silence and confused stares from the others, but fuck it! I had to get Kaiten back. "Kuja, you bastard! You owe me! Send Kaiten back! Do it or I'll find you in that tree and gut you!"

Zidane jumped up next to me and grabbed me by the shoulders. "Hey, Trevor! What are you doing?"

"Kuja's alive!" I said, offering no explanation at all. "He's the one who teleported us out and he must've given us the flight spell too! KUJA! ANSWER ME!"

I called and called, but no answer came. Could Kuja really not hear me, or he just not telepathically linked with me? Maybe he was spent and couldn't teleport anyone else. Maybe he was still evil. His transformation from world-destroying psychopath to ambivalent bystander was a little rushed. Then again, seeing how far his actions would take the world by waking Necron let him see just what he was doing. Sometimes, it takes someone doing exactly what you're doing to see just how far you've fallen.

"Zidane, help me!" I begged after a moment of silent failure. "Kuja's your brother, so he probably connected himself to you. You can talk to him if you just think what you want to say!"

"Trevor, listen to yourself," Zidane said, looking me in the eyes. "Kuja is dead! There was no way he could have survived any of that, and even if he did, he was in Memoria! Look at the top of the tree! The gate to Memoria is gone!"

I hadn't even bothered to look up, but the gateway to Memoria had already exploded. What if Kuja really didn't get out? What if he was still trapped inside Memoria? But that didn't make sense. Kuja was the type who, even as a reformed villain, would teleport himself out first. But in the game, that would mean he only teleported nine people. Here, he had to try to get eleven people out. He would have been even more strained than he was supposed to be.

In any case, Kaiten wasn't here. My lips quivered and I felt a weakness in my heart. After all this, I couldn't help Kaiten find a new life here on Gaia. He wasn't the only one from another world. We could have helped each other with everything. In a way, we had already been roommates for so long that I guess I had counted on him being here when we got out. It was going to take a while to get used to being on my own again.

"Guys! Someone's coming!" Freya said, running down the path, followed by Amarant. "We were able to signal an airship! I think it's the Hilde Garde III."

Indeed, an oddly shaped airship was floating down towards us. Since the Invincible had been left behind in Memoria, this was now our only way out of here. The Hilde Garde III landed with its deck in line with our pathway, making the climb on to the ship easy. Regent Cid himself stepped out to the deck to greet us.

"Thank heavens you're all safe!" he said, calling out over the noise of the adjacent steam engine. He threw a rope ladder to us. "Come quickly! We don't have much time!"

I felt an urge to lash out at Cid for thinking we were all here when Kaiten clearly wasn't, but then I reminded myself that Cid had never met Kaiten. In fact, no one outside our little group of heroes had, so he was not likely to be missed. It was going to be a long few weeks explaining things to other people…

The others all quickly ran to the ladder, with Steiner taking hold of the end and steadying it for the others. I just looked around at them, then back to the Iifa Tree. Kaiten was right. I did have my own group of eight crazy bastards now. I couldn't just linger here. I would have to protect them, stay with them. I could wallow in self-loathing later. Right now, we all had to get out of here.

I just looked back at the tree and gave a quick salute. If I couldn't save Kaiten, then I would make sure his memory went with me. I'd live, if only for him.

However, we had just started to board the airship when Zidane stopped in his tracks and looked around. He kicked the ground in frustration and said, "Dammit. Trevor, you were right!"

"What's wrong?" Dagger asked, staying by his side.

Zidane reluctantly looked back at the tree and sighed. "Why don't you do on ahead? I'll catch up with you all later. I have to take care of something."

"What?! Zidane, you can't be serious!"

Since I no longer had to pretend I wasn't in a game, I no longer had to pretend I was shocked by his decision. Instead, I got to cross my arms and give Zidane an 'I told you so' look. He just rolled his eyes at me and looked back at Dagger. "He's still alive."

The others, seeing Zidane drag his feet on his way to the airship, stopped boarding as well and ran back. Everyone's faces ranged from confused to concerned, until they looked at mine, in bored indifference. I just shrugged and passed the floor back to Zidane.

"Zidane, what are you doing?" Steiner demanded.

"Steiner, take care of Dagger," Zidane asked.

"What? What do you mean by that?!"

"…Kuja's alive. I can't just leave him. After all, if Trevor's right, he pulled us out of the last fight and helped us beat Necron."

But Steiner was hearing none of it. "This is ludicrous! Just because you two are from the same planet doesn't mean—"

"No, that's not the reason…"

"Come on Zidane!" Eiko cried impatiently. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because… I…" Zidane was clearly bothered with his thoughts, but pushed through and explained himself. "Because I might've done the same thing if I were in his shoes. I probably would've fought against you guys and wreaked havoc in Gaia like he did… I know it sounds crazy, but I know, deep down inside, I have to do this."

We were all astonished by Zidane's admission. Even I was a little surprised to actually hear him say it. Quina was the first to find his voice though. "You not crazy Zidane. But you go help Kuja not good idea! Is too dangerous!"

"I can't just leave him! There's no way I could live with myself. I'm going!"

"You're making a big mistake!" Steiner insisted.

"Maybe… But we all have to make big decisions in life sometimes. For me, now's that time. I have to face up to it, like Vivi did when he confronted his fears to find out about himself, or Trevor did, when he told us about his world. Those were big decisions for both of them."

"I don't know about that," Vivi admitted. "My choice was scary, but a lot safer."

"And my secret had to come out eventually," I said. "Quite frankly, I'm surprised I didn't screw up and reveal it sooner."

Zidane shook his head. "That's what you might think, but I might not be doing this if it weren't for you both. Vivi, you definitely taught me to take life more seriously. And Trevor, you taught me how important sacrifices are."

Freya sighed and stepped forward. "Well, you're obviously not going to change your mind, so I'm coming with you."

Steiner picked his chin up and stood next to Freya. "The principle of knighthood requires that one assist his comrade in times of need. I shall accompany you as well!"

"Whoa, wait a minute!" Zidane said at the barrage of aid. "Like I said, it's my moment, so don't butt in. You guys'll have your own someday. Besides, you have more important things to worry about, like Burmecia and Alexandria."

"Dammit Zidane!" Freya fumed. "For once in your life, why can't you be honest?"

"Sorry, but I can't—"

"I can't just walk away. It goes against my nature."

We all turned to face Amarant. Having taken the words right out of Zidane's mouth, he folded his arms, looking as proud as ever before. "You're a real simpleton. Forget it guys. There's no stopping this fool."

"What are you still doing out here?!" Regent Cid called once again from the deck. "Get onboard right now!"

Amarant was the first to turn back to the airship. "Come on. Let's just leave him and get outta here."

Zidane chuckled as Amarant walked away. "That guy will never change. But the rest of you heard the man! Get out of here before it's too late!"

No one was willing to leave just yet. To me, it almost felt like abandonment for a friend who was clearly in need. However, there was nothing to do to really help him. I could give advice and let him know what the roots would do, or tell him where Kuja was, but the rest Zidane would have to do on his own, and traversing these wild root-infested plains were almost certain suicide.

Through it all, Eiko let out a shrill, aggravating cry and said, "Zidane, I love you! You'd better come back!" She ran off, with Zidane blushing, Dagger frowning, and Freya and I trading amused glances.

"Zidane," Quina said. "I need eat more different food. I still hungry! You need come back, take me more places, show me more food!"

"Count on it," Zidane said. "I heard there's a place called Daguerro we could try. We'll go there when I come back."

Quina smiled and let out a creepy chortle, like Jabba the Hutt. "Aya! I like that!"

Freya sighed as Quina ran to the airship. "I can't believe you're doing this. You've changed Zidane. Until we meet again." Freya just leapt from her spot and made it to the deck in one bound, bypassing the ladder entirely.

"Zidane?" Vivi said. "You've taught me another big lesson in life. Thank you…"

Zidane smiled. "Take care of yourself Vivi."

"Zidane…" Dagger said, slowly stepping closer as her turn came.

"Princess," Steiner reminded. "We must go."

Dagger tried to protest, but she knew he was right. Her words caught in her mouth and it was all she could do to was awkwardly fiddle with her hands.

"Dagger—I mean, your highness," Zidane said, stopping to fall to one knee. "The abduction is over. I can't take you any further. I'm sorry for being so selfish."

"No, you're not being selfish," Dagger said, picking him up by the hand and not letting go. Seeing as this was a little steamier than the game's farewell went, I tapped Steiner on the shoulder and hinted that we both turn our backs for a moment. After a few seconds, Steiner got the idea and we both walked away a few feet.

In the distance, I could see the roots were still going crazy, even going so far as to attack each other. The battles were slowly making their way closer to us, giving us about five minutes or so to leave, give or take. Either way, this pathway wasn't going to be here for much longer.

"What sort of madman would make his way through this chaos?" Steiner wondered aloud.

"Someone trying to make everything right," I offered. "While I would praise his heart for being in the right place, the guy's borderline suicidal."

"Have you seen the future? Will Zidane be alright?"

"Well, that's the thing about the future. The slightest change can alter everything." I was proof of that in so many ways.

"Enough time has gone by," Steiner finally decided. "Princess, we—"

We both turned at exactly the wrong time. Zidane and Dagger's arms were wrapped around each other, locked in a deep, passionate kiss. A single tear fell down Dagger's face, until Steiner stuttered a response. "Ya-y-y-YOUR HIGHNESS!". Both teens jumped, breaking the kiss and blushing wildly.

"Yeah, he's so coming back," I said.

Steiner ignored me and asked, "Princess, are you ready to go?"

"Y—yes," she said, trying and failing to hide her face. Meekly, she turned back to Zidane and said, "Just promise me one thing."

Zidane smiled warmly at her. "Anything."

"…Promise me you'll come back…"

"…I promise." Zidane gently brought his arms around Dagger again, embracing her in a gentle hug. "Trevor?"

"What's up?" I asked.

"Do me a favor. Watch over Dagger for me? Just until I get back, ok?"

"Done."

"Oh, and if someone tries to hurt her, do me another favor and go insane on them."

I let out a harsh laugh and my hands found their way to my short swords. "Also done."

"Alright." He let go of Dagger and walked to the edge of the pathway, facing the tree. "You guys get out of here. I'll be fine. I promise."

Dagger watched Zidane for a moment in silence. She was sad, but strong. She took a breath, clearing the tears from her eyes and smiled back. "Just don't be late."

"Princess?" Steiner asked, edging her towards the Hilde Garde III. The two of them made their way towards the ship, leaving just Zidane and myself. I had been walking towards the ship, but stopped for a moment. _Should I tell him? Would it risk anything if he knew?_

"Hey, Zidane?" I said as I reached the ladder. The thief just turned to regard me. "Kuja's at the center of the trunk, below the elevator where we entered it. When you find him, kept your guard up from more roots. Those fuckers are crazy and will attack en masse!"

Zidane looked back at the encroaching roots for a moment, then grinned back at me. "Thanks Trevor. I don't know what this adventure would have been like if you had never come along, but it wouldn't have been nearly as much fun."

With a wave, I turned back and got onboard. Everyone was already prepared and spread throughout the ship. I saw Cid frowning in the cabin, no doubt having been told we were leaving Zidane behind. Dagger was still on the deck, leaning on the railing with her eyes glued on Zidane. I wanted to tell her he would be alright, that he would come back to her, but there was always that unknown element of human error. My being here had changed so much that I couldn't honestly be sure of anything. Not to mention we were at the end of the game, so my precognitive abilities were pretty much done for. Now, I just had to hold on and wait like the others.

"I'll miss him," Dagger said as the ship rose. Zidane shrank down to a little dot in the distance, never taking his eyes off of Dagger and giving her his trademark smile. "But I know he'll be back. He'll come back to me… To all of us…"

"He really knows how to make an exit," I said, watching the roots below. When would the roots directly below us go haywire? How long did Zidane—_What was that?_

I thought I had seen something. A sheen of blue amongst the roots. My eyes scanned again, looking for something, _anything_! A spark of hope lit up in my chest as I looked by the roots near the pathway.

"Trevor?" Dagger asked. "What is it?"

"I thought I saw something," I said. "It was like… THERE!"

I saw it again! An arm, bound in blue obsidian plate! My heart skipped a beat as the figure appeared to me. He was largely obscured by shadows, but there he was.

"KAITEN!" I screamed. "I found Kaiten! Lower the ship, we need to save him! GET US DOWN THERE NOW, BEFORE THE ROOTS GET HIM!"

"What's all the commotion?" Cid called over the intercom. "What's this about landing?"

I saw an intercom port a few feet away. Cid must've heard me shouting to land through that. I dashed to the intercom and shouted, "My friend is down there in the roots! We need to go back and save him!"

"But I thought we had everyone on board," Cid said. "It's too dangerous to chance a landing again! If we don't leave now, we could be destroyed by the roots!"

"If you don't land now, I'll cut the Hilde Garde in HALF!" I yanked out Crimson and extended a Demon Saber to accentuate my point.

"Trevor, Trevor! Stop!" Dagger said, pushing me away from the intercom. I sheathed Crimson as Dagger tried to calm the situation. "Uncle Cid, please lower the ship! A friend of Trevor's is trapped below and we need to save him! I'll explain everything when I can, but we need to hurry! Please!"

Cid looked down at us from the cabin. I was probably going to be banned from Lindblum for life for all the threats I made against Cid, but they would be worth it if it meant saving Kaiten. The Regent gazed out to the attacking roots, not quite upon us yet and grit his teeth. "Lower our altitude," he told Erin, the pilot. "But be ready to ascend again once they've recovered their lost ally."

The Hilde Garde III began descending at once. I ran to the railing again and saw Kaiten nearing, ever so slowly. He looked unconscious, so I would have to carry him onto the airship myself. Spotting the rope ladder rolled up at my side, an idea came to mind and I pushed it all over and started to climb down.

"Trevor? Where are you going?" Dagger asked.

"Down," I said simply. "Do me a favor and get Steiner, would you? Or Amarant? Both might be good. I'm going to need a hand in a minute."

I didn't stay to see if Dagger did as I asked. I climbed to the bottom of the ladder, wrapping my legs in the rungs until they were good and tangled. There was no way I was going to fall now, and I had both my hands free. I just watched as Kaiten came closer and closer, ignoring the sounds of chaos coming from just a few roots over.

Once again, I reached my arm out to save Kaiten…

XXXXXXXX

Light poured into the room through the open window. A soft summer's breeze drifted in, rustling the blue curtains like a dancing maiden's dress. It was a gentle environment for anyone to wake to, yet Kaiten Saeis still woke with a start, nearly jumping from his soft bed. He was confused when he wasn't met with fire and brimstone, and saddened when he didn't see his old team.

"About time."

I had been sitting at a nearby table, doing some reading. Lord Avon's plays really were as good as Tantalus' performances made them look, and the large guest room made for a relaxing environment. I closed the book and left it on the table, opting instead to pull up a chair at Kaiten's side.

"What the hell…" was all he said at first. "What did you do?!"

"Pulled your ass out of the fire. Figured I owed you that much. I'm still not sure if I was able to grab you and we both teleported out, or if Kuja did it himself, but I don't think that matters anymore."

Kaiten reached out and grabbed me by the collar, shouting, "You bastard! I told you to leave me behind! You…" He stopped for a moment, grabbing his head and falling back in bed.

"Hey, careful! You've been out for two days!"

He fell back in bed, still rubbing his head. "What happened then? Where are we?"

I sat back in my chair and kicked my feet up on the end of his bed. "We're in the guest room of Lindblum Grand Castle. Don't you recognize the room? We've only been here a few times, though I guess it is weird since you have your own body now."

"But how did I get out of the Hill of Despair?"

"That, I don't know. We just found you unconscious on the roots outside the Iifa Tree and pulled you out before the roots could smash you into a fine paste."

Kaiten just laid back and covered his eyes with his pillow. There was a long silence between us that stretched on way past uncomfortable. I just sat, ready to answer any questions, ready to help Kaiten any way I could. I was trapped in another world very different from my own, but Kaiten was trapped in another world, having been in stasis for one thousand years, trapped inside my head for months, after having witnessed the betrayal and death of his Special Forces team. He would have a much harder time adjusting than I ever would.

"What am I supposed to do?" Kaiten asked after an eternity, still covering his eyes. "I'm the last of my people… I should've died centuries ago…"

"I'm the only Earthling on Gaia too, so I can relate. Neither of us have a way home, so why not make a new one here?"

Another long silence. The birds chirping outside were the noisiest things around, yet they aided in the calming atmosphere. Maybe that was why Kaiten was finally able to say what was wrong. "Innural said he used their souls for his experiments. Would that mean that they're dead and gone forever? Or if not, would their souls be cycling through Terra's Crystal? Would mine go through Gaia's? Could I see them again? I don't know what to think anymore."

"Is that why you wanted to die?" I asked, trying to keep calm. "What would dying really accomplish? You would be dead, your team would be dead, and you wouldn't be able to do anything else with the life you could have lead."

"I know how you lost your mother, but this is different. I—"

"How?!" The interruption caught Kaiten off guard and I could tell he felt a little guilty bringing my mother up. "How is it different? If you died, I know I'd be devastated. After everything we went through, I consider you a great teammate, if not my best friend! You dying to be with your old team requires you leaving your new team and making them feel what you do now! Is that what you want?!"

"N-no, I…" Kaiten removed the pillow, sitting up in bed. "Look, I didn't mean it like that. I'm just… frustrated. I can never go home, or see my friends again."

"And neither can I! We have no idea how to replicate the transfer process, and even if we could, it takes a soul to use. Someone would have to die for me to go home, so I've decided to stay here and make new friends, a new home. The others already like us both, so it can work out!"

"But it's different for you! This entire world was a game in your world, so you're already entirely familiar with it! You knew the cast, you knew the countries and you were easily able to work your way into their hearts! I was forced into all this. I've only known about Gaia for a few months, and most of it I learned from reading your memory books. Besides, they're not my friends, they're yours! I was secluded in your head for the good of the mission, and as a result they don't know me. Aside from you, I consider myself alone and stranded on this planet."

"Then we'll tell our story to the others! I'll let them know how much you did to help me, or how much of the fighting was actually you! I'm sure if you give them a chance, they'll—"

"No, Trevor, stop! I know you have the best of intentions trying to cheer me up and saying you understand, but you really don't. Our situations are just too different. Out of respect of our friendship, I promise I won't hurt myself, but I'm not sure how I feel about staying."

My breath got caught in my throat for a moment as I tried to slow down and process all of this at once. "What are you saying Kaiten?"

"I just… I think I need to find my own way. I need to explore the world and see what I can make of it all. If I'm going to live on this planet, I'm going to need to spend some time by myself and clear my head. I'm sorry Trevor. You've been a very good friend, and had I known you then, I would have gladly fought beside you as a fellow Spectral Knight."

It was terrible, being both shocked and unsurprised all at once. I had feared Kaiten would take things this way. I had wanted to help him, but I had also wanted him near, both as a close friend and as someone to lean on. Perhaps I was actually being selfish and didn't realize it. Maybe it would be best to let Kaiten explore Gaia on his own and be his own person. He wasn't just some lookalike I could drag around to give myself comfort. We would both need to adjust, and now, that looked like we would have to do it apart from each other.

"Are you sure about this?" I asked. "Dagger, Steiner, Vivi and I are flying north to Alexandria in a few days. I'm sure there'll be a seat available if you change your mind."

"Thank you, but my mind's made up. I just need to spend some time by myself. At least, for a little while."

I could tell from Kaiten's expression that he was serious. Heartbroken and feeling vulnerable, I did the only thing I could do. I stood from the chair and extended my hand, offering it to Kaiten with a smile. "You've been an amazing and supportive friend. Thank you Kaiten. I'm just sorry it took so long for me to trust you."

Kaiten gave a soft smile back and took my hand in his own. "Thank you Trevor. I'm just sorry I had my head up my ass when I first talked to you. I should have given you a chance."

I laughed. "Don't even worry about it. I would have done the same."

We broke the handshake and Kaiten asked, "So, what are you gonna do now? Any plans?"

"Dagger offered me a job as a Royal Guard. Steiner's gonna give me some official training when we get to the castle, but I don't imagine that'll be too difficult. I'll just hang around there and watch over Dagger for Zidane until he gets back. After that, I dunno. I'll play it by ear."

"Sounds nice."

"Yeah, just don't be a stranger. Come and visit once in a while. First night at the pub is on me!"

Kaiten laughed. It was the warmest laugh I had ever heard from him. "I think I'd like that. I'll stop by when I'm in the area."

And like that, we parted. Kaiten still needed rest and food, having gone without for so long, and I needed to find Dagger and Steiner to coordinate travel and training schedules. I didn't want to leave Kaiten, but I wasn't about to stop him. The adventure was at an end, and it was time for each of us, the World Heroes as we were already being called, to go our separate ways. I gave Kaiten another grin as he laid back in bed and headed towards the door.

"Goodbye Trevor," he called out.

"Goodbye Kaiten," I called back.

I shut the door behind me, and for the first time since I arrived in Gaia, I didn't know what to do next.


	15. Journey

Disclaimer- I don't own the Final Fantasy characters or settings in this story.

Author notes: So, remember last month when I said things could go much differently than you planned? I came up with (and wrote) this chapter in about 2 weeks (new schedule's working out great!). It started as an idea for a special, just to flush out Kaiten's character a little, but with a bit of tweaking, I decided to make it canon. As a result, there's still one chapter to go after this. Maybe I'm just having trouble letting go, but I love this story too much to let it go without a proper sendoff. XD Working almost six and a half years on it will do that to you. ^^

Chapter 15: Journey.

XXXXXXXX

"And how long shall you be staying with us?"

The innkeeper was missing a few teeth. The old man looked friendly enough with his long beard and bad back, and he seemed perfectly at home in the sleepy town of Foxwood. It was a small village resting on the plateau shelf only a few days away from Alexandria. Ever since the mist had cleared from the valley, Foxwood's lumber industry had flourished. Monsters were now few and far in between, and often weren't so bad that the town's militia couldn't handle them. Either way, it made for a good first stop in Kaiten's journey.

"Only the night," Kaiten answered gruffly. He slipped the heavy backpack from his shoulders and it landed in a dry slap against the floor. On Terra, his supplies would have been prepared for him before going out into the field, with blankets, a sleeping bag, tent, military rations, plus the armor he would wear. All he would have to do was check it for flaws, then assemble it into his pack. Gaia was a different story though. The Queen of Alexandria had insisted he take a small stipend for travel. Trevor had blabbed to her and soon, what was supposed to be a private escape had turned into a social farewell. It had been awkward since these people didn't know anything about him, yet insisted on treating him like a longtime friend. Just because he had lived in Trevor's head did not mean he and Trevor were the same people.

He had left a week ago. Kaiten had left his armor with Trevor, keeping only his twin katanas strapped to his back. He was dressed in fresh civilian clothes. Kaiten couldn't remember the last time he had worn such simple clothes, even when he was on Terra. _Feels like it's been over a thousand years,_ he joked to himself. His jacket was made of leather, which kept him warm in the cold evenings. His meals were not the dried military rations he was used to. Instead, he survived on dried meats and vegetables. It tasted better, but didn't last as long. Stops at these small villages were not just reason to avoid sleeping on the ground. They also gave him a chance to restock on food. The map the Queen had provided was faded, but it did provide locations of all the villages Kaiten would need to stop at. His trip had been spontaneous, but he knew what he was getting into.

The old innkeeper chuckled. "Thought so. You look like the travelling type." He scribbled Kaiten's name messily into the guest log. In a town this small, the inn only had two rooms, with four beds apiece. "Whatcha looking for anyways? We had a man a few months back lookin' to study monsters. Haven't heard from him since. Probably got eaten, poor boy."

Kaiten lifted the backpack by a strap and walked down the hall to his room. "I'm looking for someone," was all he said as he closed the door.

The room was small, with the four beds cramping each other. A bookcase sat unused against the far wall, but the books were all layered in dust. He had the room to himself, so Kaiten tossed his backpack on one bed and laid down on another, setting his swords against the wall. He had been all alone for seven whole days. Seven whole days in his own body, making his own decisions, free from anyone else. He raised a hand in front of his face. After all the time he spent as a soul in Trevor's head, having his own body was still alarmingly different. He had been forced into combat so quickly that he didn't have time to appreciate having his own body again. His arm dropped as he laid on his back, until it draped across his eyes.

His thoughts came back to those last words he gave Trevor in Memoria. _My team is dead… When this is over, leave me here. I want to be with my team again… Stupid…_ Kaiten had shamed himself with those words. He almost couldn't believe he had said them. If his team was gone, then what would death truly bring about? Trevor was right. His death wouldn't bring anything good, but that was what this journey was all about. The Spectral Knights, Olessa, Brummia, Terra, and all its people were gone. What was his purpose on Gaia as the last true Terran? Lieutenant Kaiten Saeis died in Ckelen-te-Clu. Who was he now?

Memories of old missions ran through Kaiten's mind as he blew out the candle and went to sleep.

XXXXXXXX

Kaiten woke the next morning with light seeping into the room and a rapping at the door. "Sir?" came the elderly voice of the innkeeper. "It's noon. My wife can bring you breakfast if you'd like, but we'll need to clean the room soon."

Kaiten pushed himself up. He hadn't even crawled under the covers. He figured he had been asleep twelve, maybe thirteen hours. Kaiten grabbed his swords first, then when they were secure, he grabbed his backpack. The innkeeper had pushed the door open by that point, but Kaiten was already standing.

"Sir?" the innkeeper asked again. "Would you like some breakfast? My wife has made some pancakes for you."

Kaiten's tired expression didn't change, but the thought amused him. _Trevor would like this place._

"That would be nice, thank you."

Kaiten had taken breakfast in the front lobby. The window by the table let him look out to the garden out front. Green stems opened to vibrant yellows, reds and oranges. In the noonday light, the garden almost looked like it was burning. There was a strange beauty about that that added to the already impressive display, Kaiten found. He enjoyed looking at them, already starting his day on a high note.

"They're lovely, aren't they?"

Kaiten stopped chewing and looked over his shoulder to see the innkeeper looking out to the garden as well. "Meredith planted them. Meredith's my wife, by the way. We don't get a lot of customers, being this far out from Alexandria, so she spends most of her days either cleaning the inn or working with her flowers. I swear, that woman must be part plant herself to be able to make those flowers look so good."

"It must be hard, living out here," Kaiten said. "What do you do for money though, if you don't get a lot of customers?"

"Oh, Meredith cleans houses. I help the youngsters in town with the lumber in the forest. It's nothing glorious, but it's honest work."

"No offense, but you don't look like you could do a lot of heavy lifting, especially with trees involved."

"Oh, I'm far too old for that. I help count orders and shipments. It's the only thing that really keeps the inn afloat. I'm afraid…"

The old man trailed off in mid-sentence. Kaiten watched as his eyes grew larger in fear. "E-excuse me…" the innkeeper muttered. "I have something to take care of…"

"Is everything alright?" Kaiten asked, setting his fork down. When the innkeeper didn't respond, Kaiten called again. "Hey! Old man!"

The innkeeper jumped, but turned with a smile. "It's nothing sir," he said. "Please, enjoy your breakfast. I'll just need to step outside for a bit."

His response was a cover-up, if Kaiten had ever heard one. He looked outside, beyond the garden, to the road leading in to town. Five men, two of them nearly giants, were strolling in, hands in their pockets, sneering as if they owned the town. Kaiten could tell at once they were thugs, though what they wanted, he didn't know. The man leading the pack in front had a sizable broadsword resting in one hand, draped over his shoulder. He wore a blue bandana blocking one eye and partially covering a scar on his cheek. He scanned the village, perhaps picking a target. As he stopped in the middle of the road, the rest of the thugs stopped, following his lead.

One man was as tall as the lead thug, but one wouldn't be able to tell by how hunched over he was. He had a pair of daggers at his sides, as well as throwing knives all along his chest. Another man had a thick steel breastplate, no doubt stolen from a lowly knight. The breastplate was the only armor the man wore, making him look out of place from the others, rust and dents notwithstanding. He had a broadsword at his side. The two giants in the back would have given even Amarant a run for his money. They were clearly more brawn than brains. One was armed with a club that had been whittled down from a tree and the other carried a warhammer that was as big as a large dog. There was little wonder why the people in the streets ran for their homes.

As the lead thug finished scanning, he pointed two fingers out to the first hovel on his left. Kaiten had seen a woman carry her two young children into the home, but the giant with the club made short work of the front door. The hunched over man followed, and a shrill scream cried out for help seconds later. As it was muffled, the sound of a baby crying could be heard. What concerned Kaiten was when the crying seemed to halt mid-breath.

"What… the fuck…" Kaiten watched in horror. Already his anger stirred, channeling his purple magic. Kaiten felt his hand reach for a katana as the second giant and armored man entered a second hovel, but was startled by a noise behind him. Suspecting an attack, he turned, pulling his first sword out in one swift motion. He readied himself, but only saw the frail old man, kneeling on the floor. He had tripped and dropped a small bag of coins, scattering them about.

"What are you doing?" Kaiten demanded.

"Th-they… the bandits…" the innkeeper said while gathering his coins. Kaiten stepped in, stopping him at once.

"Get up," Kaiten ordered. "Tell me about them. Who are those guys?"

"…Bandits," the innkeeper finally answered. "They're called the Lookouts. They came in to town a few weeks ago. At first, they helped us. Since the Army was busy with the war, they weren't around to save us from the monsters. The Lookouts said they would fight off the monsters, for a small price. We gladly paid, but then the mist disappeared, and so did the monsters. With no monsters to fight, we saw no reason to pay, but they demanded it anyway. The Lookout got angry and… started holding the village hostage."

"But what about Alexandria? I know the Queen. She would have sent help if you were in this much trouble. Have you never tried to get word out?"

"Of course we tried! We sent messengers, runners, but they never came back. A day after we sent one, the small, hunched over one would come back, cleaning blood off his knives. He did it to make a point. We even tried getting our traders to go to other villagers, but one of them would always accompany the driver. They would tell merchants in other villages that it was for 'added protection', but we knew they were keeping an eye on our traders. We were trapped and could only give in. Now they come around once a week and demand payment."

The giant had come out of the first hovel, followed by the hunched over man. The second team arrived as well and the man in the blue bandana gathered them up again. The first team found another hovel to invade, but the man in armor and the giant with the club started towards the inn. Kaiten drew his second katana as he prepared for the two.

"Old man," Kaiten said. "These Lookout thugs… Would you like me to get rid of them?"

"W-what?!" the innkeeper blurted out. "You can't! They'll kill us all and torch the village! Just let me pay them the money!"

"Sorry," Kaiten said. "Wouldn't be right."

The armored man walked into the lobby and the giant with the warhammer was right behind him. The armored man saw the innkeeper first, standing amongst a small pile of coins, but saw Kaiten, both katanas drawn, and pulled out his own sword. The giant pulled his warhammer from his shoulder and held it in both hands as he stood like a tower in the small room.

"And just who the hell are you? You better put those swords away," the armored man asked. He aimed the tip of his broadsword at the innkeeper and said, "You, get those coins off the floor and hand them over! Do you want the monsters to come back?"

"No! No, I'll… I'll get them," the innkeeper said, kneeling down. He scooped the coins into his hand, but Kaiten put himself between the old man and the Lookout thugs.

"HEY!" the armored man threatened. "I thought I told you to put those away! Cruz and I here will mess you up good!"

"Cowards…" Kaiten muttered, his voice a mixture of gravel and rage. "You impose your will on these people so you can live comfortably without doing anything? What use are you really? What harm would I do if I killed you where you stand?"

The armored man backed up a step into the giant, who only grunted. "You better watch what you say! You're outnumbered five to one, and the last guy who messed with us went over the cliff into the valley! Besides, we protect the village from monsters!"

"And what monsters are those? The Mus, whose throw the occasional pebble? The Fangs, who are little more than large dogs? Other such monsters, who can be defeated by a decently-sized fence? If you can't even admit to yourselves how worthless you are, then maybe I should kill you outright, rather than let you run out of town."

The armored man's face blushed red from anger. No one in Foxwood had stood up to the Lookout in months, but now this newcomer had the balls to try? He stepped aside, pressing against the far wall and said, "Cruz, take him out! Make another example of him!"

Cruz pulled his massive hammer back, cracking through the wall beside the door. The innkeeper saw where this was going and ran, dropping the coins to the ground once again and diving for cover behind the front counter. Kaiten slowly slid a foot back, tensing his body for the exact moment when he would strike. He had gone up against men this big before on Terra. They were strong, sure, but they were slow, and one good hit was all he would need.

The giant's arms bulged as he brought his warhammer down onto Kaiten, and he swung at an arc. But when the moment of impact was supposed to come, Kaiten tilted his entire body back in the gentlest of dodges. The hammer missed completely, burying itself instead in the table Kaiten had been sitting at minutes before. That was all the opening Kaiten would need.

His body rocked forth from the dodge. His right katana quickly traced up the giant's arm, finding its target so fast that the larger man could barely even see the attack as it was coming. The tip of the katana slipped through the air, almost singing as the wind brushed through the blood groove. The sharp whistle was the last thing Cruz the giant heard as the last three inches of Kaiten's steel cut deep into his neck.

The cut had been so quick and precise that there was barely a trace of blood on his sword, but the same couldn't be said for the floor. Blood shot out like a river dammed with loose sticks as Cruz raised his hands, first in astonishment, then in panic. He brought his hands up to his neck to close the wound, but it was only instinct. His face turned white as his leaking jugular drained his body, until standing became too much as he collapsed, falling on his side, weakly kicking his legs out.

It was never a small thing to take another man's life, but Kaiten had done it so much that he knew better than most when it was necessary. He looked up at the armored man, terrified of the death of his friend. Mere moments ago, he had been ready to fight, but now, realizing what he was facing, he dropped his broadsword and ran out the door as fast as his legs would take him.

The armored thug ran, pulling at the dented armor. It had never fit him properly, being built for someone else, but it had always served before today. Now he would be glad to be rid of it, just to run faster. He struggled to pull it over his head, but something slammed into his back, exploding on contact. He was blasted forward onto his stomach, landing only a few yards away from the man in the bandana. Only when he looked up did he realize that half the metal on his back was missing.

Kaiten stepped out of the inn slowly. The Arc he had launched had done its job in scaring the runner. The other giant and the hunched over man were coming out of their second hovel. They gathered at once, wondering why one of their own was missing.

"B-boss!" the armored man stuttered. "This guy, he… he killed Cruz! Cut his throat open!"

The bandana man's nostrils flared, visibly angry. He brought his broadsword down from his shoulder and rested it in the ground, pommel up. "You… Do you have any idea who you're fucking with?"

Kaiten gave a tired blink in response. "Do you?"

"My name is Anthony Barklett and this is our town! We rule here, and anyone who tries to get in our way dies! Ask anyone in town!"

"Never heard of you," Kaiten said, the same bored expression never leaving his face. These four seemed to think they had earned some dreaded reputation. Kaiten had gotten bigger challenges from Brummians half their age. He looked around to see people watching from their windows and doorways. He caught a glance of a badly bruised woman in the first house, and he felt a new well of rage building within himself.

"Never heard of us?" Barklett asked, trying to regain control in the conversation. "Well, I've never heard of some fairy walking around, sticking his nose where it doesn't belong, carrying some tiny-ass sticks like yours, and no one ever will! Boys, KILL HIM!"

The remaining giant, the hunched over man, and even the armored man, who found new strength with his gang, all ran forward. They charged, weapons raised, with bloodlust foaming in their battle roars. They each made it almost a dozen steps before Kaiten countered.

The Terran held his blades at his sides, channeling Purple Magic into them. Kaiten's reflexes were as sharp as ever, and his magic as powerful as it ever was. He took out the armored man first, slicing another Arc into him. The thug was slammed in the chest and his feet kicked up as he stopped immediately, as if he had run into a pole. The hunched over man pulled out several throwing knives, tossing two from each hand. Kaiten readied an Explosion and raised it up, intercepting the knives. They fell into the sphere of energy and were disintegrated all at once.

The two remaining thugs continued running, still ignorant of what Kaiten could do. Time slowed as Kaiten calculated every maneuver they were likely to pull. The giant stepped out first, swinging his club down to cave Kaiten's entire body in. His sword still powered by an Explosion, the Terran lifted his sword up, and the magic ate away at the club as it had the knives. The giant continued the swing, but with no more weapon, he fists plowed into the dirt, and he looked in confusion, wondering what had happened.

Kaiten stepped in, twisting his entire body around, and dug his blade into the giant's side, where he released the energy. The Explosion went off, blowing a chunk out of the giant's side. He wasn't dead, but the shock would send him that way shortly.

Next came the hunched over man. He charged with dagger's ready, leaping to stab Kaiten's exposed back. However, Kaiten was still spinning and leveled a katana to his side. As the thug neared, Kaiten finished the circle, striking first. His blade sliced through the unarmored man, but was soon met with a sliver of energy. Kaiten released an Arc as the weight of his attack forced the hunched over man to turn in midair. The added attack blew the little man away and over Kaiten's shoulder. He landed, gasping, unsure what had happened, and with a severely bleeding wound.

Kaiten pressed his foot to the ground and stopped his spin, with one blade aimed for Barklett. "Your men are dead."

"Yes, I see," Barklett said, calm as could be. "I'm very impressed! Why not join with me then? You're a powerful fighter, and I'm a brilliant thinker! We can work together, and take more territory our own. Plus, with the others out of the way, we each get a bigger cut. What do you say, partner?"

Barklett was a smooth talker, but his body betrayed him. His voice couldn't cover how badly his legs were shaking. Kaiten lowered his katanas for a moment, giving Barklett the disgusted look he deserved. "How did you even take this place over? Ambushes? Did you kill the villagers who spoke out against you in the night? Why would I work with someone as pathetic as you?"

"Hey, this is just the beginning! We can accomplish so much! Just please… listen to reason! You can get so much with me at your side!"

"I had a team once. Do you know what their final test to join my ranks was?"

Barklett, now shifting backwards, shook his head in silence.

"They each had to kill a dragon. By themselves. You're not even close to their caliber."

Barklett saw the determination in Kaiten's eyes and turned to run, but it was too late. Kaiten brought both blades together over his head and charged the air between them, lining up his shot. Within seconds, his attack was ready and he took careful aim. Barklett made it easy and ran in a straight line, but didn't make it far.

"Fin!"

Kaiten crashed his blades into the earth, erupting in a massive energy spike. It followed Barklett, slicing into his backside and exploding. The energy tore at his back and flung him headfirst into a wall, crashing through it. He was buried up to his hips, where he went limp, with only a thin trail of blood soaking down his leg.

Kaiten turned away, sheathing his blades. "Asshole."

Kaiten walked back to the inn to gather his things. He had spent the night and already had breakfast. It was time to get back on the road. As he started to leave, the villagers who had watched from their homes wandered out into the street, looking on in bewilderment at their fallen oppressors. The bruised woman stepped out, taking one look at the splattered remains of the giant. She took a few moments to stare, then let loose with a swift kick to the giant's head.

"You…" the innkeeper said as Kaiten strolled in. "I've heard of you! I heard rumors from the Alexandrian army before the Lookout took us captive! You're the Dual-Wielding Demon! You were wanted by Alexandria during the war!"

"No, I'm not," Kaiten corrected. He pulled his backpack onto his shoulders and grabbed an apple off of the counter. "He was someone else. Thanks for the room."

Kaiten left a handful of coins on the counter and stepped out to a celebrating crowd. They were too busy cheering and hollering to notice the Terran, who didn't feel like joining them anyway. He just walked out of town, heading south, unsure where exactly he was going.

XXXXXXXX

Days turned into weeks turned into months. Kaiten's journey took him to the villages of the Mist Continent, to the Dwarves of Conde Petie, and even to the Iifa Tree, where he had fought his last major battle. Supplies came and went, but he was able to recall his training and found food on the land, even on a foreign planet. Hunting was easy with the monsters roaming the open plains, and even easier still to fight them. His skills grew sharper the more he grew used to his own body. There had always been something holding him back when he shared a body with Trevor. Perhaps that something was Trevor himself, and the concern for hurting a friend. It led Kaiten to many nights, wondering if he was truly stronger on his own. He had often talked about the importance of teamwork with the Spectral Knights, but how did he truly feel about it?

Night after night came back to that very thought. What was he without his team? On this planet? He was not Trevor's clone, or sidekick, yet that was exactly what he felt like. Years of military experience meant nothing one thousand years after the fact and in a new world. He had promised Trevor he wouldn't risk suicide, but what was there for him on this planet? He had no home. He had no identity. The only man he would call friend was Trevor, his genetic double, but a single friend wasn't enough to build from.

He spent a week at the Iifa Tree, staring at its tangled remains. The top of the tree was bare, where the leaves had once been, and the top had been mangled and burned by the collapse of the portal to Memoria. Most of the roots had torn themselves from the earth, attempting to pierce the sky. Several others had even turned inwards, stabbing at the trunk itself. Kaiten had seen the cutscene from Trevor's memory books. The roots had chased after Zidane, attacking the tree itself to get at him. Zidane was the closest thing Kaiten had to a relative now. Zidane was crafted, even down to his very soul, and born in a tube, but he was at least a Terran. Was he still alive within the mass of roots? Kaiten spent four days mapping out the area and searching, but found no sign of Zidane.

What was his reason for being here? Why had he been teleported out of the Hill of Despair? Did he have a destiny yet to fulfill? Saving Gaia must not have been enough. Where was he to go now? There were plenty of places to go that the party never went to in their campaign. Daguerro, the Chocobo Gardens, Mognet… Perhaps Kaiten could find himself there? He would often shake his head and sigh. There was one place left for him, one last relic of his world, but even if he wanted to go there, there was no way to reach Oeilvert. The high cliffs and crashing waves made a water landing all but impossible, and the small sailboat he had "borrowed" from Alexandria Harbor wouldn't make the trip looking around the continent for a less dangerous way in.

Then, on the eighth day, Kaiten made an unusual discovery. A shimmer of blue flashed from out of the roots. Curious, Kaiten made his way to it. Roots had settled over it and it was in desperate need of repair, but the unique shape gave Kaiten no doubt as to his discovery.

Before him, lay the remains of The Invincible.

Kaiten could hardly believe his luck. If he hadn't glanced in the right direction as the clouds were parting, he wouldn't had seen the exposed hull from below the roots. It rested on one side, awkwardly sticking a wing up, but with a root wrapped around it. The airship still hummed of life, no doubt a result of Kuja's rampage and the preparations he made. The teleporter below still worked and after an hour of cutting roots clear, Kaiten was able to warp his way into the ship.

As soon as he landed inside the ship, Kaiten fell to his side. Gravity kicked in and the floor was badly tilted. Kaiten landed against the far wall, but was no worse for wear. The same couldn't be said about the inside of the ship though. Five months of dust had collected in every corner and on every surface. Monsters had gotten in and tore up some of the paneling. There were several animal skeletons stuffed in a corner of the lobby, and one of the side doors was open. Something, or several somethings had made a nest in here. Given the state of the beasts in the plains, Kaiten was sure it was nothing he couldn't handle.

Slowly, fighting the awkward tilt, Kaiten was able to make his way to the cockpit. Despite the mess outside, the Ship's Heart was relatively untouched. A few hours worth of dusting would clean that up soon enough. The front screen was off, just like Trevor had left it when the landed at Memoria. For months, Kaiten was sure they had thrown away the powerful airship, but it seemed it had instead been blasted clear of the portal during the eruption and the attack of the Iifa Tree. What a lucky break! Now Kaiten had another piece of home with him. _A relic riding inside a relic,_ he joked. Maybe Kuja's cruel barb had something to it.

Leaping his way to the handrails around the Ship's Heart, Kaiten was able to connect to the center of the ship. He rested against the rail as the main screen powered up. At first, static ran in straight lines across the rounded screen. Kaiten worried about how badly the ship was damaged, so he ordered a diagnostic test over all the Invincible's systems. There was a gentle hum all around him as the ship powered back to life.

Kaiten thought back to the first time they found the Invincible. The others had seen it as a terrible thing, impossible to stop and controlled by a madman. Trevor was different because he knew what would happen, but even he just saw the Invincible as an insanely powerful airship, desiring control over it. It was different for Kaiten. The Terran felt his consciousness sinking into the Ship's Heart, closing his eyes and connecting with the ship on every level. This was his planet's legacy, and its power was far greater than anything anyone was aware, with Garland and Kuja as the only exceptions. That had been how Garland was able to destroy Alexander while all Kuja had been able to capture Eidolons.

When Kaiten opened his eyes again, the main screen had repaired itself. A schematic of the airship appeared before him, with several areas highlighted in red. Most of the damage had been taken by the hull. The dents and scratches Kaiten saw coming in were sign enough of that, so the news didn't shock him. It was a miracle the Invincible was even whole after getting blown out of Memoria and beaten by the rampaging roots. There were several other problems within the ship. The ventilation system would need repair and several of the rooms had been caved in, but those appeared to mostly be contained to the residential area. The computer and life support were operational, and there was no detections of a power leak in the soul charger. That last blip allowed Kaiten to take a breath of relief. If the soul cannon had been damaged and ignited in flight, the Invincible would likely blow up, killing him and destroying everything around.

"Invincible," Kaiten spoke to the computer. He wasn't sure of every aspect of the airship, but he knew some basics about flight from his Special Forces days. The Invincible was designed after his first death, but with the Ship's Heart, Kaiten was pretty sure how everything worked. "Begin repair protocol on all essential programs. Divert all remaining energy from the shields and direct them to the engines. Power to all thrusters and raise altitude by three hundred feet."

The Invincible shook as an acknowledgement message blipped on the main screen. A second of static switched the view to a live feed, allowing Kaiten to watch the horizon as the airship jerked to life. The entire hull rocked as it pried itself of the remaining roots clinging to the frame. Soon, Kaiten was free and the airship righted itself over the ground. Kaiten relaxed his grip on the railing and stood at attention out of habit.

"Good," Kaiten said. "Invincible, search for any lifesigns on the ship that are not in the cabin."

The computer complied, and after a short moment, it gave Kaiten the all clear. Whatever had broken into the ship had run off. Perhaps it was a herd using the ship as a seasonal nest, waiting for eggs to hatch. There would be a lot more to clean within the ship if that were the case. Kaiten did not look forward to that job at all. Perhaps he could get it repaired further and cleaned in Lindblum. After all, he wanted his airship to look as good as possible.

_That's right,_ Kaiten thought. _My ship…_

"Invincible," Kaiten ordered. "Register ship's log; user name: Lieutenant Kaiten Saeis. Next, open a map of all known Gaian territories and plot a course southwest. Maintain altitude of 1500 feet. Full throttle at directional heading."

There was something Kaiten had to discover for himself, and Oeilvert was the only place to find the answers.

XXXXXXXX

The red dust never stopped shifting in the small canyon, it seemed. Kaiten stepped down from the Invincible, leaving the airship hovering above and using the teleporter to disembark. The sunburned cliffs rose high above him in all directions. In the maze of canyons, it had taken him most of a day's search to pinpoint Oeilvert's exact location. When he found it, the sun was already starting to set, giving even the sky an orange hue. It all gave Kaiten a headache, making him wish for the solitude and shadows within the ancient temple even more.

It was only a short walk from the canyon entrance to Oeilvert. At first, he thought something seemed off about it, but it didn't hit him until he was at the doorway. He noticed how wide the doors were and recalled how much trouble the team had had in opening them before. The doors were open wider now, perhaps pushed open by another team of explorers.

_Or, a large monster_, Kaiten thought, drawing his katanas. He eyed the apparent damage in the doors, as if they had been bashed open. He stepped inside cautiously, ready for any fight that was about to happen.

Inside, the main lobby looked very much untouched. Natural light still peeked in through several windows, but Kaiten grabbed a torch from the wall just in case, sheathing a single blade. Lighting the torch with a match from his pack didn't help light the room much, but the halls looked rather dark, and every bit would help. Kaiten couldn't remember much of the visit last time as he was heavily distracted, remembering he and his team's final mission. Even now, the dark memories tugged at him, but he didn't allow his mind to be clouded. He needed to focus.

Kaiten walked the dark halls, exploring as if seeing Oeilvert for the first time. In one way, he was excited, but there was a twinge of fear. Unlike Zidane, the text came clearly to Kaiten, at least where it wasn't faded. He read ancient mysteries of his homeworld, while also reading about what happened to Terra after his death. Olessa never finished the Great War, finding themselves in a stalemate after the Spectral Knights vanished. Though they were winning, the Council of Vacles had opted to restore peace, which the people of both countries agreed to. Kaiten shook his head in disgust. None of those people knew it was the Council who created the war in the first place.

He also found an image of General Arin Saiko, standing proudly before an enormous globe of Terra. The text below spoke of a brave hero, staying behind, risking his life to save the entire planet. Staying behind apparently referred to the stasis Terra had been left in. The members of the Council of Vacles were amongst the first to go to sleep, followed by the citizens of Terra, who had all won a lottery to preserve themselves. The planet was falling apart and didn't have enough space to save the entire planet. Millions starved in the streets while General Saiko continued his plan to absorb Gaia. It was a foolhardy plan, but it was the only one Terra could hope for. Kaiten looked on as Garland stood valiantly, guarding the dying planet, unsure whether he felt more or less respect for the man.

Garland didn't choose rest and relaxation, instead planting his soul in a new, twisted body, to watch over Terra for millennia. While the Council of Vacles left everything in his hands, Garland had to work all on his own, working harder than almost anyone else on the planet, guiding the suffering nations, not just Olessa and Brummia. Kaiten admired the unending work ethic General Saiko always presented, but remembered that no matter what, this was the man who had betrayed his team. Even if it was for the good of the planet, did Garland deserve Kaiten's admiration?

Kaiten walked away, already more conflicted than when he had first entered.

Further along, the hall narrowed to a thin doorway, like walking down the neck of a bottle. A warped, wooden door swung open, swaying gently in a soft breeze coming from inside the next room. He pulled it open and was awed by the mass of faces protruding from the rounded walls. The entire room was a shallow dome, perhaps twenty feet at its highest point. The faces, unnerving as they were, were all in various states of disrepair. Kaiten's head craned from one to the other as he stepped into the room. The torch flickered in his hand, so he set it in a sconce by the door. What little light remained from the setting sun peeked into the room from a hole in the ceiling, large enough to have held another face at one point. The wind accompanied the light.

_What is this?_ Kaiten wondered. _Who built this? When did they…?_

Oeilvert itself had its own mysteries, it seemed. Kaiten looked at the damaged faces as they watched back with cold, lifeless eyes. Not a single face looked unscathed. The purpose of the room eluded Kaiten, until a single face glowed a bright orange and pushed itself several inches out of its frame. Kaiten flinched, readying himself for anything, until the face spoke.

"Welcome," it said in Olessan, "to the Hall of Records."

"You… speak?" Kaiten asked. "Wait, Hall of Records? Is this an information terminal?"

"Correct. This terminal exists as a wealth of information from the final days of Terra. Please, present your questions."

There was so much to ask, so much he wanted to know… _Where to begin?_ "What destroyed Terra?"

The face answered at once. "Unknown for certain. In an effort to stave off a dying Crystal, Terra had learned how to absorb smaller, weaker Crystals from other planets. However, in their zealous pursuit, the leaders of Terra overextended their reach. After the fifth Golden Age, no nearby planet existed to absorb. Guardian Arin Saiko, hereby known as 'Garland', attempted to absorb a planet on the outer reaches of Terra's Crystal. The results of this attempt have yet to be entered."

The answer only confirmed what Kaiten already knew. General Saiko failed in his first attempt to absorb Gaia, and so Terra was absorbed by Gaia instead. He had been experimenting to find a way to reverse the effects, which was why Kuja, Zidane and eventually Mikoto were created. He may have been on to something, but the group of heroes had interrupted. Kaiten couldn't help the pang of guilt. Had he betrayed his planet? It would have been for the best for Terra if he had helped General Saiko, but that would also mean betraying Trevor, the only man alive who understood his plight.

"How is Terra now?" Kaiten asked, remembering the fires Kuja started. "What is its condition?"

"Unknown. That information has yet to be entered."

Kaiten growled in frustration. He had come all this way for information, but so far nothing had aided him. He had access to possibly unlimited information, but with a thousand questions flowing through his mind, how was he supposed to find the right questions to ask first? With no idea where to start, no question was perfect.

"Can Terra's condition be reversed? Can it exit the state of flux and become its own planet once again?"

"Unknown. Guardian Garland attempted to absorb Gaia in an effort to save Terra—"

"I KNOW THAT ALREADY!" Kaiten shouted. The face didn't seem to hear him though and repeated the answer to his first question in full.

"—The results of this attempt have yet to be entered."

"Worthless machine…" Kaiten muttered. It seemed all the face knew was information it had been given before General Saiko launched his plan and failed to absorb Gaia. And even then, all the information was purely factual. These machines couldn't understand destiny or where his life should lead. Perhaps if General Saiko were still alive…

Kaiten picked his head up. The General wasn't alive, but he still was, and Terra had a rich history, ready to be studied. "What do the history books say about the Spectral Knights?"

But this time, the face waited several seconds to respond. "No information on 'Spectral Knights' exists at this time. Please enter authorization code to enter new information."

The news brought confusion to Kaiten. "But that doesn't make any sense! Is the information classified?"

"In an effort to preserve Terra's history and culture for the future, all available information has been declassified and stored within this terminal. The name 'Spectral Knight' does not appear within these records at this time."

The Spectral Knights' exploits were well known, even if they themselves were not. The citizens of Terra knew full well about Special Forces team, so why hide information about them? Would General Saiko try to protect them somehow after his betrayal? Kaiten's thoughts unfolded slowly as he contemplated every possibility. One string of thought came to him after a minute.

"Who was Hart Innural? What kind of man was he?"

"Sir Hart Innural is regarded as one of Terra's most brilliant geniuses, even greater than Nicolo Boleman. His inventions were many and his theories were rock-solid. In time, his creations would have definitely led to Brummia's victory in the Great War against Olessa. He will live forever, having learned how to create an eternal soul within an undying body. His contributions to research on the power of the soul are believed to have slowed the decay of Terra, though unforeseen forces made absolute salvation mathematically impossible."

The entry screamed of tampering. It was too kind, and the face lost its soulless dialect, speaking in favor of Innural. Innural was a member of the Council of Vacles, so surely he would have had access to a terminal like this as well as any authorization code he would need. He could alter whatever deemed fit. Or even delete entire entries…

"Who was the last person to enter any information on this terminal?" Kaiten asked. The answer came immediately.

"Sir Hart Innural."

Kaiten swung his sword at the floor so quickly that he didn't even realize he done so until he saw the blast radius left by the Explosion he brought out. That monster Innural managed to get one last laugh in, erasing the Spectral Knights from one of the only remaining record of Terran history while also propping himself up. _The audacity of that bastardous cretin_! One final straw. One last insult to injury… Kaiten considered destroying the last remaining face, for what little good it had done him. The answers given were worthless, and now questionable, with Innural's personal touch.

_No_, Kaiten finally decided. He sheathed his blades. Innural may have erased him and his team from history, but Kaiten Saeis was still very much alive. His simply being there was all the proof he needed. But what if that wasn't enough? Kaiten lost himself to his thoughts, sitting in the center of the room. He watched the inactive faces watching back at him. He had been lost to history. Every accomplishment, failure, victory, loss, friend, ally, enemy, salvation, wound, and moment… They were all gone, and without any access code, they were gone forever…

But it wouldn't end here!

Lieutenant Saeis was gone in Terra's history, but Kaiten Saeis was alive on Gaia. He still had a life, weapons, armor, and a friend back home. Terra was gone, and as much as it pained him, he had to accept that. Terra was gone, but Gaia was not. Kaiten would live on, to prove he existed. To prove he was alive and could do great things! He would preserve his memories of his team, and when he died, they would become part of the Crystal within Gaia.

Fuck Innural! Fuck all his scheming little plans! Kaiten wasn't about to let it end here. He had a long life ahead of him. Why not spend it however he wanted? Gaia was far different than Terra, but Kaiten already had an advantage there. Trevor McEvoy was his closest friend; a man smarter than most thanks to his education on Earth and stronger than most thanks to Kaiten's own influence. Kaiten had personally met with two of the leaders of the strongest nations on the planet. He had already accomplished more than most in his first week in his new body. What else could he do?

Confident, standing tall and unafraid, Kaiten left the darkening room behind. New plans and details of a life he had yet to live brought a smile to his face. He left Oeilvert behind and boarded the Invincible. His airship lit up as he entered the cabin and the main screen flashed to life, almost as if greeting him. Kaiten drew a breath and rested his hands on the railing as he stood at the Ship's Heart. His hands glided across the railing and he admired the room, feeling one with the ancient vessel.

"Invincible," Kaiten commanded. "Open map and plot a course east, to Alexandria."

Trevor was right. It was time to make a new home here.

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Just one chapter left guys, and guess what? I've had a bit of extra time this month, so it's almost done! To celebrate Shattered Mind's success, I'll release the next chapter ahead of schedule, as soon as it's finished! Let's give Trevor and Kaiten the send-off they deserve!


	16. One Last Curtain Rise

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters in this story.

Author's note: Gods, I've been building up to this chapter for 6 and a half years! The last chapter. The final entry in the saga. Trevor and Kaiten's last adventure together. I've had a lot of fun writing this series and will never forget writing it. I hope you all continue to follow my writing through Micro God, Luminarium (distant future), and The Book Was Better review show, if I can ever find the time and the right programs. XP

In the meantime, please enjoy the final chapter of Shattered Mind: Control…

Chapter 16: One Last Curtain Rise…

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**Six months later…**

Alexandria in the late fall was lovely. Now that the mist was gone, everyone could see into the valley below. The deep green of the grass far below stretched far into the horizon, and the rocks of the cliffs all around reflected orange during sunset. Evil Forest had a slight tinge of brown from the few normal trees within it. The rest was a mix of dark green and black, possibly having been replaced with a new master of the forest. I decided I might need to take care of that on my next day off.

Decorations adorned the town and the airship lot was full. Nobles and royalty from the neighboring nations had been invited. The entire kingdom was roaring with delight for the Queen's upcoming birthday celebration! For half a week already, the citizens cheered for their beloved ruler who graciously watched over them. Balloons and streamers hung from every street, vendors had specials on all their wares, and even a few new products. The 'Alexandros Spiced Rum' one pub sold was nice, but the 'Garnet-Heart Pie' needed some work. It was like a runny cherry pie, and its biggest problem was that it wasn't cake.

By now, everyone knew what Garnet Til Alexandros and her team of heroes had done within Memoria. We had all gotten special credence in a national ceremony. Lindblum, Burmecia, the many villages throughout the kingdom, and even the survivors of Cleyra were invited to celebrate.

Amarant was the only one who hadn't stayed to receive an award. Something about not wanting to be recognized. Instead, he wandered off, back into the streets. It was almost sad seeing him go, since he was still an integral part of the group. I made sure to tell him to come back and visit. He just grunted.

Quina was thanked by Dagger herself. The Qu were a highly isolated race and rarely met with humans or Burmecians, so one getting international attention like this was especially noteworthy. Quina was also offered a job as Alexandria's head chef. He would work in the kitchen, experimenting with whatever he chose to, using the freshest ingredients with all the assistants he would ever need. Satisfied with his first meal to the point of obsession, Quina ended up eating a dinner meant for seven people. Fortunately, it was just a get-together for our small band of heroes.

Eiko was without a real home and had grown too fond of the rest of us to go back to Madain Sari. Fortunately, Regent Cid stepped up and he and Queen Hilde adopted the little girl. Eiko seemed marvelously unprepared for royal life since she had basically been raised by moogles for the last two years. Cid said she spent her first month running around like the rambunctious kid she was while giving the servants cute nicknames like 'Moma' and 'Potato'. Cid said he was working on her behavior.

Freya went back to Burmecia. The Cleyrans had been gracious in aiding Burmecia in its dire time of need and even offered further aid in reconstruction. After Brahne's death, while the rest of us had been traveling, Cleyra and Burmecia had been working together to rebuild. Refugees from Lindblum even returned home and there was a lot less work to do than I had thought. Freya had been honored and given the rank of Commander of the Dragon Knights by the King of Burmecia himself. She even found her lost love, Sir Fratley, though he still had amnesia due to combat. They still spent their first night sitting under the stars together.

Speaking of Freya, a friend of mine responded to my invite to the ceremony. Seki, the Dragon Knight who had become a refugee in Treno, even brought all her kids with her. After the ceremony I reintroduced the two together again. Neither could believe the other was still alive, and I made sure to keep Seki's life in Treno a secret. They hugged, shared tears, and shared beers, while I took the kids off Seki's hands for a night. Seki had moved back to Burmecia and retired from military life, preferring instead to raise the kids as their adoptive mother. They all seemed a lot happier now that they were out of that dark, dingy city and back into their drenched, washed-out city. Burmecians are weird like that.

Vivi had been given a unique offer as well. Even though he had never technically belonged to any nation, he said he preferred to live in Alexandria, since that was where most of his friends lived. As such, Dagger gave him citizenship and he was made an ambassador to the Black Mage Village. The Black Mages were seen as regular people and their village was recognized as a sovereign state. Vivi had already earned their trust and was the perfect person to fly out once a month to conduct trade and diplomatic missions. I had to fly with him on the first three missions until he got the hang of it on his own. I think he just wanted me around to hang out with.

Steiner retained his rank of Captain of the Knights of Pluto. He said his position was at the Princess' side for the rest of his life, vowing to assure her safety. Instead, he was honored with newly polished armor and weaponry for his entire squad. He was so proud of it that he even wore the armor our private dinner later that night, watching it gleam in the open hall. He was only mildly infuriated when Quina ate all the food.

Dagger was already queen and she found the idea of rewarding herself absurd, so Lindblum and Burmacia did it for her. The three countries formed a pact, swearing off wars with one another so that another Mist War would never happen. The agreement also led to an increase in trade, which helped bolster the rebuilding nations. Now that the mist was gone, villages started popping up in the valleys between the nations, increasing farming as well. Cleyra had been invited into the  
>alliance, but they declined, preferring their isolation so they could live in their own peace. The Alliance, as the new pact of nations was called, and Cid crafted a seal to represent the newfound relationship. Three interlocked triangles met with a smaller circle within them, symbolizing the nations of the Mist Continent and their importance within the world as a whole.<p>

Zidane and Kaiten were both given awards, even though neither were present. Kaiten had left Lindblum for his journey days before, and we still had no idea where Zidane was. Zidane had earned the Diamond Sigil, for acts benefiting the whole of Alexandria, far above and beyond the call of duty. According to Doctor Tot, the award had only been earned twenty-seven times in the last thousand years. A portrait of Zidane was also set to be painted and hung in a special hall. When the artist complained he had no one to paint, Dagger told him to wait. Zidane would be back.

No one knew how much Kaiten had fought, lost and sacrificed more than I did. Though Dagger gave him recognition in public, his reward was kept confidential, known only to her, Steiner, Beatrix and myself. Kaiten was to be given citizenship to Alexandria if he chose, as well as recognition of his rank from Terra. He would be allowed to prove his loyalty to Alexandria and achieve a military career.

As for myself, I had been presented a new rank, created within Alexandria's government. I was made Guardian of the Kingdom. It was largely an inflated title, but I was treated the same as a Captain in the Army, able to give commands as I saw fit. I was Dagger's bodyguard part of the time, and I did patrols through the city other times, working alongside the Army or the Knights of Pluto. I assisted the Kingdom when I could, like accompanying Vivi on his diplomatic missions, as well as aiding nearby villages from monster attacks and bandit raids. Dagger and I both knew that it wasn't a permanent position, but it allowed me to watch over her, like I had promised Zidane, until he came back.

As part of the Guardian rank, I had been given a new sword and armor. The armor had been crafted out of mythril to match my Terran armor to replace the missing breastplate. The sword was a large broadsword with a subtle edge. It was adorned in gold and sapphires, made more for decoration than actual combat, but I accepted it all the same. I knew I wasn't likely to use it since Crimson and Azure were all the blades I needed. Still, it would make a lovely decoration once I had a home built.

As Guardian and bodyguard to the queen, I was granted a room within the castle. I wondered about life after Zidane's return and seriously considered life in the military, though with Steiner around, I wasn't sure of my chances of a promotion. I could probably take a transfer to captain easily enough, but beyond that? That was far in the future, so I didn't even worry about it.

I also thought about housing. During my patrols into the city, I would scan the apartments on the eastern side of the river. They seemed like the nicest place in town, and within my price range, considering what I was getting in my pay. The fact that it was where some of the city's cutest girls also lived was almost irrelevant. Wouldn't dad be proud to see me now?

Dad… I thought about him a lot. I thought about my real body laying in that hospital bed, tended to, but basically dead. No soul meant no recovery. How long would dad watch over my lifeless remains until he gave up? And speaking of fathers, I had someone to contend with in this world. Shortly after we came back from Lindblum, I had to meet Captain Delores.

We had met in the garden in the castle where I first met Captain Delores and learned about his son. Before I could get a word in, he told me how proud he was of me, and that he loved me. He said he wished he had a hundred troops as capable as I was. He told me everything a good father said to his son. That only made telling him the truth harder. Trevor Delores was dead, and his father deserved to know.

"Trevor, I… I don't understand…" Delores told me. I could see tears welling up in his remaining eye. "Why would you tell me something like this? Was it something I did?"

"No, Captain… Sir," I struggled to say. This was almost as hard for me to say as it was for him to listen. Even now I wasn't even sure what to call the man, much less what to say to comfort him. "I don't want to live a lie. Your true son died to bring my soul into his body. My partner and I killed the man responsible though."

Delores sat on a stone bench next to the fountain in the center of the garden. He thought his son had been missing, and that he had found him when he saw me in Cleyra. His real son had been dead the entire time, having gone missing the night of Dagger's abduction. I thought it best not to approach him. "But how is it possible? How could you not be Trevor?"

I told Delores what I could about Terra, the Invincible, and the feats capable of with soul power. Delores was too heart-broken to fully grasp everything about what I was saying, but he understood what he had to. I thought about telling him how I was lost to my own father, but decided against it. I had no idea what the Captain was going through, and I wasn't about to patronize him. When I reached out to comfort him, he pulled away.

"Please," he asked. "Just let an old man mourn his son alone for a while."

"Yes sir," I said quietly. With nothing left to say, and nothing to say, I just left him there. I asked Beatrix to watch over him and make sure he was alright. She was shocked as Delores was that I wasn't his son, but she understood how much support he needed now and left to see him.

With my business concluded, the only thing left was to make a life for myself here in Gaia. I often considered finding a way back to Earth, but the cost was too high. Killing someone was bad enough, but destroying their soul to use as fuel was monstrous. I tried not to think about it as best I could, but it was hard to avoid a stray thought sometimes.

As we drew closer to the Queen's birthday, security got ever tighter. Patrols increased within the city, the gates were monitored more sternly, and every airship coming into the city had to be registered to land in advance. Most of them belonged to nobles from Treno, or they were shuttles dropping people off from around the continent, but we had to be careful. Rumor had it that an international group of thieves posing as actors would be arriving.

I was on patrol near the airdocks the day of Dagger's birthday when the alarm rose. The watchtower saw an unregistered airship coming our way and called down to the rest of us in a panic.

"Load the cannons and take aim," I commanded the soldiers working the defenses. "But take your hands off the triggers. Someone hail the oncoming ship. Tell them to land in the fields in the distance so we can board and inspect them."

The radio technology Regent Cid had traded with us was one of the most useful advances we had seen in a long while, allowing us to communicate between our defense towers and the main castle without running back and forth. We were also able to contact oncoming and outgoing ships, though that was mostly the airdock's job. However, security trumped here, and I got to take charge.

"They're not responding sir!" the communications officer said. "Either they're ignoring us, or they don't have a radio in place!"

"Not responding?" I repeated. Alexandria and Lindblum had optimized all their airships with radios, meaning this one was either an older, privately owned model, or they were openly hostile. Either way, I signaled the cannons to keep their target in sight.

"I see him!" the watchtower suddenly called down. "It's the Invincible! Repeat, the Invincible is coming! It's flying straight for the castle!"

"The Invincible?!" I repeated. Was it Kuja? This was what I had readied the city's defenses for. The game never answered whether he was truly alive or not, so even I didn't know what to expect. There was no way we were going to be caught off guard. "Raise the alarms! Contact Captain Steiner and General Beatrix! Have them mobilize their troops at once! Cannons, take careful aim! I want a wall of cannonballs to knock him off course! Get him away from the city!"

My communications officer radioed the castle while the cannoneers readied their shots. Our defense array had a dozen cannons on a raised platform, so we didn't have to worry about collateral damage in town. I covered my ears as a round of shots rang out through Alexandria as each of the cannons unloaded their fury, one immediately after the other. As expected, the Invincible was agile enough to evade our first volley, but instead of approaching further, it landed in the field outside of town. Perhaps Kuja was trying to come here on peaceful terms, or perhaps it wasn't Kuja at all.

"Ready the cannons again, but hold your fire," I commanded. "I'm going out there. If it looks like he's going to take off again, open fire immediately and take him down. His main cannon takes a few seconds to fire, so even if he's attacking, you'll have a few seconds to take him out. Aim for the red eye on the underside of the ship."

The soldiers worked quickly, reloading their cannons and holding their aim. Meanwhile, I tore down the winding stairs, running to the streets. I could make it to the city walls in a matter of minutes. Getting inside the ship and inspecting it when I got there would be another matter though. Steiner was already gathering five of his troops and leading them to the western gate. Five was better than he usually got from his blundering squad. They had been improving since Steiner returned.

"Steiner!" I called out as I caught up. "Got my message?"

"About the Invincible, yes," he admitted. "I rounded up what soldiers I could. The rest are still on patrol. Do you really think it's Kuja?"

"No idea. The game doesn't say whether or not he dies."

"Kind of a gap in the story, isn't it?"

"Sometimes it builds tension, and you don't always have to give the audience all the answers. There are plenty of stories out there where characters are just ignored off page and never reappear. But if it is Kuja, I don't think he's here for anything sinister. Why else would he land outside of town?"

"A good point. I'll make sure to keep that in mind during his interrogation."

Citizens of Alexandria gathered in the streets cautiously to see what the big deal was. By now, everyone knew about the alien ship landing outside of town. Mothers gathered their children together and guided them into their houses as we ran passed. Men gathered tools and whatever weapons they had, but Steiner bellowed for them all to stay put. We would take care of this.

Beatrix and a division of one hundred soldiers were already on the scene when we arrived outside the gate. She had her troops spread out, thinning the lines so fewer of them would die should an attack come. However, for all the setup we saw, the soldiers were all very calm. Ready for battle if need be, but calm.

"Diana?" Steiner called as he and I pushed through the ranks. Beatrix was at the front, her sword, Save the Queen, in hand. But she held the tip to the ground, holding herself back from battle. "What's going on?"

"Adelbert," she greeted coolly. "Calm down, it's not an emergency."

"The city alerted, the guards mobilized, the Invincible of all ships arrives, and it's not an emergency?!"

"What's going on?" I asked, looking at the ship as it rested in the field. The Invincible was resting on the ground, its usual hum running. I couldn't help but look at the red laser port and remember the last time it had been used on the city. "Who was piloting the ship?" It was only after I asked that I noticed him, standing around, backpack held by one strap over his shoulder, like nothing was amiss. Just like the day he had left.

"Kaiten?!" I said cheerfully. I grinned wide as we approached each other. He dropped his bag to the side and the two of us reached out for a short bro-hug. "Are you back? You've been gone for months! And how'd you find the Invincible? I thought we lost it in Memoria!"

"Relax! One question at a time!" He hoisted his bag and started walking towards the line of soldiers. I kept close to him as we strolled together. "Geez, you're acting like you thought I was dead again."

"Well, considering how many times you've died and come back, I might as well think you've gone out to find God or something."

"As if. I just needed to clear my head. And stop hovering around me!"

"What's God like? Does he like pancakes? Tell me he likes pancakes!"

"Lieutenant Kaiten," Steiner greeted. His expression was gruff, as the situation seemed to call for, but gave Kaiten the respect he deserved. Kaiten returned the favor with a nod.

"Captain."

"That was uncalled for," Beatrix approached. "You've terrified half the city and put the Royal Guard on alert!"

"Then tell the guards to back down and the citizens to relax. The Invincible is mine."

"Hey, I called dibs!" I was quick to point out.

The three of them ignored me. "Bringing that ship here was reckless. In addition to the upgraded security within Alexandria due to her Highness' birthday, you've brought a known enemy ship to the capital!"

"Two things," Kaiten said, holding up as many fingers. "One, shut up. Two, it's not an enemy ship. It's mine, and I intend to use it to help Alexandria, if I'm paid enough."

"Trevor, talk to him, will you?" Steiner asked, putting himself between the warring soldiers. "Diana, remember, he did help save the world."

Meanwhile, I grabbed Kaiten and took him ten feet away to talk. "Hell of an entrance," I said.

"You always did have a strange fascination with those," he remembered. "Anyway, what's her problem? Is she still pissed off because I beat her in combat in Burmecia?"

"She's just on edge, always on the lookout for the next Kuja, just in case. After all, it's Dagger's birthday and last year she was kidnapped, albeit consensually. And if I remember that fight, Kuja got a hit on you as well. But anyway, you didn't answer my question. Are you back for good?"

"For now," he said. "I've decided to get a job and move to Alexandria, if the Queen doesn't have a problem with it."

"Actually, you've been granted citizenship. It was your reward for saving the world in the ceremony you missed."

"Well, that takes care of one problem. Now I'll just have to find a place to rent. Think you can lend me some Gil? I'm a little short these days."

"I can do that," I said. "Free room and board inside the castle means I can save my money pretty easily. Also, part of my job means patrolling around town, so I think I can help you find a place. What kind of work were you gonna try out? You could join the military here. Dagger said she would reinstate your rank and everything."

"You still call her that?"

"One of the many perks of my job. I can tease a queen and get away with it." My sinister laughter caught even Beatrix's attention until Steiner pulled her back.

"Cute. No, I was going to try my hand at mercenary work."

That puzzled me for a moment. "You're gonna be a merc? I'm not sure how crazy Dagger'll be about that."

"It isn't much different from my last job. Besides, guard duty is too confining for me. I need to be able to travel and stretch my legs. That's what I loved about Special Forces. And one more thing," he said, pausing for a moment. "I'm going to need a partner."

I eyed Kaiten for a few seconds, sizing up his offer. "You want me to join you? You want me to be a merc?"

"I'll still be calling the shots, but yes, I could use your help."

"Why do you get to call the shots? I was the one who got us through most of the storyline!"

"Because I'm the company CEO and founder. Besides, how much military experience do you have again?"

"Uh… I'm the world's first Guardian of the Kingdom?"

"_That's_ your title?!" Kaiten blurted out, not even trying to hide his mocking laughter. "Please tell me you didn't choose it yourself!"

Suddenly, Beatrix's patients wore off. "FINE!" she shouted. "I'll go report to the queen. Make sure he doesn't cause any more panic!"

She stormed off in a huff, pulling her division of soldiers back as well. Steiner could only sigh as Kaiten and I approached him. "Tough break big guy?" I asked.

"I convinced her not to arrest Kaiten for disturbing the peace," he said. "She doesn't lose well."

"Damn. Hope that doesn't mean you'll be sleeping on the couch."

Steiner stood up tall and resumed his authoritative appearance. "I'm going to ignore that you said that. In any case, you'll have to leave the Invincible here. We don't want to rile the people more than they already have been."

"Fine," Kaiten said. He turned and looked up at the airship. "Invincible, lock procedures Alpha-One-Alpha." After a moment, there was a sharp _CLANG_ coming from the ship, as if someone had snapped a lock over it.

"Did you just put an anti-theft lock on the Invincible?" I asked. "Why would you put an anti-theft device on the Invincible?"

"To make sure no one steals it, obviously."

"You did that just to keep me from taking it, didn't you?"

"Well, I _have_ been inside your head."

Steiner ordered his men to line up towards the city. "We're going back. Hopefully we can convince the citizens to relax. Trevor, don't forget you're still on duty, so don't slack off just because Kaiten showed up. Beatrix is still angry at Tantalus for kidnapping the princess right under her nose last year."

"Right," I called back as he left. "I'll patrol until the Prima Vista shows up and try to stay out of the way."

"Thank you," Steiner said, stepping back into the gate.

"Speak of the devil," Kaiten said, pointing to the distant sky. "Look."

Coming over the walls of the city, the Prima Vista II was on approach. The theatre ship flew slowly as it neared the landing pool. It looked just like it did in the intro to the game. I had come in late, so I never even got to see the play. Seeing the ship from this low angle gave me the same sense of majesty that I had felt the first time I had ever played the game.

"They're early," I said. "We should head back to the castle. The play is going to start at sunset. The streets are gonna be pretty crowded, so we should head in now."

"Might as well," Kaiten shrugged. "I don't have much else to do anyway. Not like I've opened shop yet."

The new Prima Vista II looked almost the same as the first ship. Six tall steeples rounded the edges of the airship, each topped with twin propellers spinning lazily. The figurehead at the front of the ship was of a mermaid, tail wrapped to the underside. The wide windows dotting the ship and its steeples were multicolored, shining a rainbow of colors into the depths of the ship. Most notably was the stern, which hosted a large stage. Several traveling airships like this one existed, but the Prima Vista was the largest I had ever seen. I almost had to wonder if Tantalus had stolen it.

By the time Kaiten and I reached the castle, the Prima Vista had already landed, splashing down in the large pool by the river. I saw Benero and Zenero, the short, odd little helpers Tantalus employed, already setting things up for tonight's show. The hardly regarded me as I let myself on the stage. I looked back over the pool, chuckling to myself as I remembered how this adventure had all started right here in this very arena. I tried to see where Trevor Delores must have fallen from the bleachers and where my soul was transferred into his body. I had a sobering moment, remembering the cost of everything up to this point, but trying to convince myself it was all for the best. The world was safe, and soon Zidane would be back with Dagger. Everyone would have a happy ending.

"Hey, you coming?" Kaiten called from the curtain.

"Right," I corrected myself and got back on task. "Sorry, just thinking."

"Remembering how your story started?"

I chuckled. It had been one year ago today that I was dropped into Gaia. So much of the world here had changed, and so much of it thanks to me. So much of it still looked the same, but there were a great many improvements. Lindblum was repairing, Burmecia was almost fully restored, Alexandria was under better rule, and Kuja was gone and probably dead. International trade was up, villages were spreading, and I had my own fandom, complete with cute girls left and right. Dagger often joked that I was trying to replace Zidane as our group's womanizer.

"Yeah," I finally answered. "I guess there isn't much left to do but reminisce. That and get ready for the party tonight. Don't you get nostalgic about it all too?"

"Little bit," he said. "I passed through Dali on my journey for that very reason. The village is doing a lot better. They've expanded the farm and there was no more underground factory from what I could tell."

"We're gonna have to sit down so you can tell me everything you did. And you still need to tell me how you found the Invincible."

"Yeah, yeah."

"_Trevor_?"

The curtain ruffled on the stage behind us. I had to look for a moment, but at the corner in one of the wings the curtain furled and flapped in the wind. I stepped towards the wing of the stage and threw the curtain back. Blank, Cinna, Marcus, and all the others would have been working to get ready for the play, but it was someone else who greeted me as I gazed into the recesses of the airship.

"Zidane," I smiled. "About goddamned time you showed up."

Zidane stayed to the shadows, signaling for me to enter the wing, behind the curtains. I turned to Kaiten and told him to wait for a minute as I stepped inside. Kaiten just waved me off and took a seat on the edge of the stage, looking out over the water.

The curtain cut off the light from Alexandria for the candle light of the backstage instead. It was dim, but I could still see Zidane clearly. He looked a little frazzled, but was otherwise no worse for wear. "Good to see you again," I said. "Knew I would."

"Hehe, yeah," he agreed. "Can't get anything passed you. Thanks for the advice inside the tree though. Looks like you saved me once again."

"Glad to help. What about Kuja though? Were you able to save him?"

Zidane's expression dropped. His lower lip hung open and he turned away, which gave me all the answer I needed. "I… Kuja, he…died while I carried him out of the tree…"

"Hey, it's alright," I said. I clapped him on the shoulder to reassure him. "You did the best you could, and made it out alive. Besides, Kuja still died heroically, despite how he lived."

Zidane stood up straight, but folded his arms. "Thanks Trevor, but… I came to accept that a while ago. Kuja was my brother, but now I need to move on. Besides, there's so much for me here."

"Like Dagger?"

Zidane smirked, edging back to the curtain. He chanced another glance out for only a moment, then relaxed the curtain again. "I may have been trying to see her before the show. I'm a little nervous since I've been gone for so long. You see, my plan was—"

"Join the play in secret, cover yourself in a heavy cloak, pretend to be Marcus and profess for love for Dagger right there on stage in front of the entire kingdom?"

"I forgot that this was all a game in your world. Of course you'd know my entire plan…"

"Heh, sorry buddy."

"But if you've seen the play, you know what happens, right? What does Dagger think? Will she like it?"

"You know I don't have to tell you that," I said. "What do you think she'll do?"

"I'm hoping she'll race down from her seat and plant a big kiss on me."

_Prepare to be pleasantly surprised._ "Well, one can hope for you. But anyway, I'm sure you have to prepare, and I think this is good enough for my security sweep of the airship. Just promise me you won't try to kidnap Dagger again. Beatrix is on edge enough as it is."

"The plan is just like you said," he explained. "Nothing more."

"Good," I smirked. "I'll have Dagger in place in time for the show. Just give a hell of a performance. Good luck!"

I slipped out from the curtain and back on stage, but not before Zidane called out, "It's bad luck to wish an actor luck before a show!"

"You don't need it!"

Kaiten heard me coming and stood, giving himself a moment to stretch from his short break. "Are you ready to go?"

"For now," I said. "I'll need to report in to Beatrix and let her know everything is safe, then I'm on bodyguard duty for Dagger until the show starts. Why don't you come with me? We have an extra seat waiting just for you. It's one of the best in the house! Fifth row, center."

Kaiten shrugged. "I've never been much for theatre, but I don't see much else to do, so I might as well. How's she been by the way?"

"Dagger's been fine. She's a little hesitant to make some of her decisions, and she's a little naïve, but she's doing a good job."

"Sounds like someone else I know."

"Haha, fuck you."

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Reintroducing Kaiten to Beatrix and Dagger was simple enough. Dagger admitted she didn't know much about Kaiten, but was willing to learn about one of my friends. Beatrix said she would stay with Dagger for the rest of the evening just in case Kaiten was trying something. I did what I could to keep them apart, but fortunately, Kaiten felt comfortable with his sense of superiority that he didn't feel threatened by Beatrix. I guess arrogance could be a good thing every now and then.

As evening fell, the royal guests arrived. I always thought the final cutscene looked too rushed in the game, like it had been written and made months before the rest of the story had been plotted out. That would explain why Dagger's hair was longer than it was now. It also left out the dinner party Dagger held before the play.

Regent Cid took one side on the long dining table, sitting between Hilde and Eiko. Hilde seemed to have recovered completely from her time as Kuja's captive, and she and Cid seemed closer than ever. She touched his arm, leaning on him from time to time, though custom seemed to frown upon it. Eiko was still a rambunctious kid, but was no doubt receiving manners lessons. She had a brand new purple dress with white frills, which she quickly ruined by splashing soup on herself during the first course of dinner. She sat still for the first half of dinner, then insisted on changing seats with the Regent so she could sit closer to Dagger and they could chat. She called it a need for "girl talk".

The King of Burmecia also joined, along with Puck. Puck looked way out of character in his red suit and black tie. I almost wanted to put a powdered wig on him just to see what he would look like. However, unlike Eiko, he fit the behavior _and_ appearance of a royal child, sitting calmly and speaking in turn. Unlike Eiko, he didn't fidget or bounce around. It was hard to believe he was once the kid who ran away from his entire country just out of boredom. Still, his transformation wasn't total. Before dinner, he asked if Vivi was around so he could slip out and hang with the little mage. I told him Vivi wasn't due back from a diplomatic meeting until after dinner. Puck just sulked like the child he was.

Beatrix and I were in charge of guarding Dagger as she sat at the head of the table. Beatrix actually allowed herself to lighten up for the first time all day when Dagger insisted the general try Quina's new quiche recipe. Kaiten would have joined us, but declined, preferring instead to eat at the Bronze Cup Tavern in town. He said he would have looked out of place at the table, but promised to join up before the play started.

Finally, the hour of the play was upon us. Simple fireworks lit up the sky one at a time in the dark sky. They reflected off the pool, giving two shows at once. Citizens of the town gathered along the rooftops, watching for free while the nobles and honored guests took the seats directly in front of the stage. Dagger, as queen, was given the best seat: a large, silk chair sitting in a balcony overlooking the stage. Regent Cid and the King of Burmecia were granted seats at her side in smaller, but equally comfortable silk seats. Beatrix and Steiner took their spots, standing side to side at the back of the balcony.

The rest of the World Heroes were given an entire section in the middle of the house, just underneath the balcony. Freya arrived with the king, having invited Sir Fratley. Quina brought food out from the kitchen in buckets. What I had first thought to be popcorn or something similar turned out to be a pail of sausages. The smell and his hasty, open-mouth chewing nearly made me sick. Amarant came back to us, bringing Lani along with him. He pretended to be disinterested in the reunion, but Lani sat next to him nervously. It was obvious she was focused, but not in the play.

Eiko stayed up with Regent Cid so she could talk with Dagger. At this rate, she was going to talk the young Queen's ears off. Eiko didn't seem to have anyone close to her age to talk to in Lindblum, so this trip was a blessing to her. Vivi came back via airship, running to the audience and leaving himself out of breath. Puck was waiting for him and within minutes he was talking about pranks they should pull together.

I was given leave for the night. With Steiner and Beatrix guarding Dagger, they were more than enough to keep her safe. I kept Crimson and Azure with me, but left my armor in my room within the castle. Kaiten joined me after dinner and the two of us sat together in the middle of our group of heroes. It felt funny sitting around all these friends, knowing what we had all done and how strong we were collectively. I felt proud and amazingly accomplished.

I considered myself, as an Earthling in this strange world, making a life for myself. Then I looked at Kaiten, a Terran, who was also making a new life for himself here. It was such an odd pairing of heroes, but we had done it. We had made it to the end of the game. I could never have a simple life in this place between my friends, my powers, and this very world, but I could definitely make a name for myself. I had become a hero, just like I had always wanted.

"What are you giggling about?" Kaiten asked, elbowing me in the ribs. "The play's starting!"

The audience clapped wildly as the fireworks finished in one massive display. Sparks flew over the water and rooftops, lighting the night sky for several seconds. The band erupted into fanfare to the delight of everyone watching. The crowed exploded into cheers, and even Kaiten started clapping. Amarant and Lani were the only ones not caught up in the moment.

The crowd died down as Baku walked onstage, dressed as King Leo, in a green robe with red trim. "Ladies and gentlemen! Tonight's performance is a story that takes place long, long ago. Our heroine, Princess Cornelia, is torn from her lover, Marcus. She attempts to flee the castle, only to be captured by her father, King Leo. Tonight's story begins when Marcus and Cornelia decide to run away together. And now, Your Royal Majesty, Queen Garnet, Lord Steiner, Lady Beatrix, noble ladies and lords, and our rooftop viewers, Tantalus proudly presents 'I Want to Be Your Canary'!"

The play almost seemed like a slight retelling of last year's, except Marcus wasn't captured in this version and Cornelia didn't sacrifice herself to save her father's life. I laughed as I thought about my entrance in the play, pole-vaulting into Steiner as the play collapsed into all-out combat against the castle guards. Did that really happen only a year ago? It didn't feel that long ago. So much had happened and I thought about how much stronger I had become.

On stage, Cornelia and Marcus discussed running away together. Marcus acted as himself, instead of Zidane in disguise like the game. He wasn't much of a hero to look at, but Ruby played Cornelia brilliantly, making their love seem genuine as she fell into his arms and practically melted. They met in secret and for a while, it seemed they would be able to get away together. Marcus explained he would have to disguise himself, but they could escape the country together by boat. However, their plan had one major flaw…

Blank, playing himself, overheard all their plans. Being loyal to King Leo and his country, he realized the damage Cornelia's departure would do to the country, mostly involving her betrothal to the prince of the neighboring country. So, after Marcus had departed, promising to meet Cornelia the next night, Blank struck. He knocked Cornelia and kidnapped her, returning her to her father.

When Marcus returned the next night, he was covered in heavy garb, hiding his face and body. Cornelia did not come out to greet him. He stayed, waiting for hours for a girl who would not come, dodging palace guards and Blank, unable to fight for being horribly outnumbered. As dawn broke, Cinna approached, warning Marcus that the boat would have to leave soon. Marcus refused to leave without Cornelia, even as Cinna left him behind.

With nothing left, Marcus looked up to the twin moons in the sky above. He raised his arms, appealing to the heavens, asking for their aid. "I beseech thee, wondrous moonlight, grant me my only wish!" With one quick motion, Marcus grabbed at his cloak, tearing it off, only to reveal our missing thief instead. Zidane threw the cloak to the ground, took one step towards the apron of the stage, and finished the quote: "Bring my beloved Dagger to me!"

Dagger was stunned, to say the least. I had been looking up during the reveal to see her reaction. She went from intently listening to the play, to surprised, to utter shock. She turned away from the balcony and immediately bolted through the castle, pushing her way through her guards to reach the audience.

Confused nobles stood from their seats and looked around. This wasn't in the play they remembered. Was the queen suddenly part of the performance? Who was this new character, and who was this Dagger he called to? They didn't have long to wonder as Dagger tore through them all, pushing her way into their lines, and shoving several of them out of her way. In the rush of unexpected romance, she didn't care how she looked, not even pausing as her crown fell to the floor as she rushed up the steps.

Dagger threw herself into Zidane's arms, nearly sending them both to the floor. Zidane stood fast though, supporting her light frame easily and holding her close. Dagger, with tears in her eyes, shouted at Zidane, calling him an idiot, and slamming her fist into his chest several times. However, Zidane took the hits, pulling her in closer and stroking her hair. Dagger calmed down at once and her tears soaked into his vest.

Half the audience cheered in delight at the romantic gesture. The other half, particularly the nobles, looked on in confusion at the un-queenly behavior. They were eventually caught up in the moment and half-heartedly applauded as well. Even Regent Cid and the King of Burmecia gave a standing ovation to Queen Garnet's lost love returned. Our own group of World Heroes exploded the loudest, with cheers reaching the rooftops to see Zidane returned and to see him reunite with Dagger. Even Amarant and Kaiten were standing and clapping along.

After a minute-long embrace, Zidane cupped Dagger's cheek and brought her lips in to meet his. She blushed wildly, embarrassed to be seen like this before the applauding crowd, but she didn't resist, pointing her toes out to better reach him. When they broke apart, Dagger led Zidane off stage, towards the castle, picking up her crown along the way, and they both returned to the royal balcony. When they were seated again, Baku came back out on stage, declaring that romance had won, and that a second play was being prepared after a brief intermission. The audience settled down back into their seats as gossip was already spreading about Queen Garnet's unknown lover.

"So, I guess that's it?" Kaiten asked, leaning back into his seat. "No more foreknowledge? No more predicted plotlines? No more game?"

"I guess," I said, looking up at the night sky. "It almost makes me wish I had told everyone my secret as soon as I got here. I'm just glad I was able to do some good."

"Cleyra still exists, Vivi is alive, the King of Burmecia is alive, and the world is safe from Kuja… Yeah, I say you made a difference."

"Yeah, well, I never would have gotten through without your help and absorbing your Purple Magic, so you've earned just as much credit as I have."

"If you insist," Kaiten smirked. "You never actually answered my question. Will you join me? I'm going to rebuild a team of specialists, and you're the best man I can think of to join me."

"Trevor McEvoy: Mercenary…" I said aloud. "I kinda like it. What are we gonna call ourselves?"

"I haven't come up with a name yet. Perhaps that's something else you can help me with."

"Why not reform the Spectral Knights? I mean, you were the Lieutenant and in charge of it all."

"No, the Spectral Knights have earned their rest. There will never be another team like them ever again, so I say they've more than earned the right to keep the name for themselves."

"Alright," I nodded. "Still, life as a merc…"

"We can go on plenty more adventures," he said. "We both know your team didn't explore most of the planet. There are lots of other places that might need our help. Daguerreo and Mognet, for starters."

"Adventure, huh? That is pretty tempting." My hands found their way back to my short swords. "I guess Dagger won't miss one bodyguard. And I promised Zidane I'd watch her until he got back. Besides, I have a feeling they'll need a lot of privacy in the coming days."

"So you're in?"

"I'll resign tomorrow morning. Dagger will understand."

Kaiten let out a deep, grateful laugh, the kind I had never heard from him. He seemed almost relieved as he reached out and grabbed my hand to shake it. "This is the start Trevor! We'll both remake our lives here, together! A sole Terran and a lone Earthling defending a world of Gaians! We'll be the things of legends, turned to songs and plays!"

I could only smile as Kaiten listed off the things we could achieve together. I had never seen him this excited before. He seemed genuinely happy, for once. Admittedly, I felt a pang of regret for my own plans. I had hoped to explore Oeilvert and the Desert Palace to find a way to understand Terran technology. If I knew how it worked, perhaps I could find a way back to my real body, back to my world and to my father. But then, I would be depriving Kaiten of his best friend and partner. He would go back to the way he was, sullen and antisocial. And the others would miss me as well. Was it right of me to spend my time searching for a technology that likely didn't exist anymore? And one that came at so high a cost I would be remembered as a murderer if I attempted it? No, I decided. That would not be my life's ambition. Here, I had friends, a partner, magic, a business, a future… Gaia was my new home.

My place was here, among heroes.

XXXXXXXX

I'll take a moment here and apologize for the chapter being two days late. I know this was the final chapter and all, but I wanted it to be absolutely perfect for all of you, so I took the extra days, editing, reediting, rewriting and going over everything (god help me if there's a typo in there somewhere XP).

I also wanted to end this by once again thanking all my reviewers, for whom I persisted in writing every month (with only a few missed deadlines XD). You guys have been an inspiration in your dedication.

-TailedCharmer, my first regular reviewer.

-Solark, my oldest (on again, off again) reviewer (can you believe he's been around since chapter 3 of Issues? XD).

-Dragoon Swordsman, one of my earliest concrit reviewers. Always did look forward to his input.

-Tabansi 232. Her story, Flipped Up Reality, was an inspiration and was largely why I started Shattered Mind. It's just a shame she didn't continue her story, though, it might have been to my benefit since everyone would be talking about her story instead of mine if she had. XD

-Blaze Shadow, another old reviewer, still around today.

-Argus456. It's amazing how many of my reviewers have been around since Issues. XD

-Yuleen75, created the first bit of Shattered Mind fanart. And really, how many fanfics have their own fanart? There's a link to the art in my profile if you wanna check it out (do it o.o).

-Glacilius Caelum. HI KEITH! I MENTIONED YOU! :D

-NewtThatGotBetter. Had a lot of fun PMs with this crazy person! XD

-The Duelist of Dawn. I swear, I'm going to try to read your story. It's not often you find a talented person who creates an SI that gets all the way to the end of the game. ;)

-Dreylen, same message to you as Duelist. I started your story and intend to finish it with the new free time I should have now. :D

-Ezakiel, one of my older reviewers, all the way back in Anger, with often some of the longest reviews, and you all know how I love me some long reviews! XD

-D3athrav3n92. A fellow anime fan always willing to gush when I do something right.

-Chang-Tong. Always gave big reviews, and somehow always found my gaping flaws in my chapters. God only knows what she'll find within this chapter. XD

-Hikari No Aijou, came in and started pointing out some of the more in depth points within the story. Very unique perspective which I always look forward to.

-Grey Grapevines, huggysupreme, minkeypaws, The Tiny Pea, CSOmega, Shameless-Ceyt, Aleks the Lighthearted, Puck of Cleyra, FF and STH, Cherie R. Lynn, Welded, Aurineko, Sylph Writer, Shikyo no Kyuofu, Jj David Lee, Elia41, XtremeManiac33, and everyone else I may have left out! :D

Though I've been building to this point for years, I haven't exactly been looking forward to it. I've loved every minute of expanding on these worlds, creating and watching Trevor and Kaiten both grow. In many ways, I'm at a loss for words. I'm going to miss writing for these guys and for all of you. Now I'm going to have to find something more to fill my time at home. Sure, there's my Micro God series (which I hope you all stick around to enjoy XD), but I always looked forward to writing Shattered Mind each month and seeing what all of you thought. Your reviews meant so much to me. All the constructive criticisms, compliments, jokes, and complaints for every cliffhanger (and in one reviewer's case, constant threats of lawsuits XD), all were special. Shattered Mind has really become something important to me. You know, I kind of have to wonder if this is what it's like to be a parent and watch your kids grow up, knowing you have to let it go in the end…

I'm going to miss it…

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…Ok, fuck it, I lied! MORE CLIFFHANGERS! XD

XXXXXXXX

A cloaked figure scurried along the quiet rooftops, hidden in total darkness by the night sky. While fireworks erupted over a cheering crowd in the theatre pool, the spy had stolen into the city, unseen, unheard, unknown. Trained for years in espionage and stealth, the man had no trouble making his way onto the rooftops and towards an old, decrepit chapel, deeper into the poorer end of the city. Only small puffs of dust under his feet followed him.

After escaping deep enough into the aging city, he finally came upon his target. Without breaking his stride for an instant, he leapt, slipping through a broken windowsill on the steeple-crowned tower. His hand darted out and caught the rung of a ladder with inhuman accuracy, and he slid down the abandoned tower to a boarded-off room. The chapel had been condemned after Bahamut's attack on Alexandria. A fireball struck the street outside, pelting the chapel with stone and debris, damaging it beyond repair. The rounded wall threatened to give out at any time, but it had stayed strong all this time. It made for a perfect hideout for the group.

The figure landed to an open room. Several other cloaked figures turned to face him, all masked by shadow. They all looked at him hopefully as the spy spoke up.

"It's him," he said. "No doubt in my mind, he's alive and in the city!"

The mood in the room lightened, but only slightly. The details of the mission were only confirmed now. This changed nothing. One lone figure stepped forward with his arms clasped behind his back. "You look troubled. What else is there to report?"

"He seemed… complacent. These people are our enemy, so I think they might have brainwashed him." Some of the figures groaned, some shouted. One just grunted as he leaned against a wall, his wide hat pulled low. "And that's not all. Apparently, the three largest governments of this world have combined into one allied force. We can't run a rescue mission without pissing off the entire continent!" The spy pulled out a flag from his pocket. On it was a design of three interlinked triangles with a circle at their center. "If we attack one, we attack them all. These Gaians may be primitive, but we're outnumbered 100,000 to one. No matter how good we are, there's no way we can match those odds."

The lead figure took the flag, rolling it over his hand. He looked back at another hooded figure and snapped his fingers towards the kindling in the fireplace. The second man flicked his wrist up, shooting a stream of pure fire until the kindling was ablaze. "It's true," the leader started, "that we've never faced an opposition this strong. Outnumbered, surrounded by every available army in existence, on a new planet, all to rescue one man… Oh yes, we're in for a challenge this time."

He took one step forward towards the flame, and the face of Aitris Naze lit up. He knelt down, still talking into the fire. "We have not come all this way, survived an exploding planet, for nothing. If Gaians and a false Terran blew up our planet, we'll find a way to ruin theirs, and we'll save the LT in the process. We'll avenge Terra, and restore our good name!"

The rest of the men in the room cheered, pushed to action by Aitris' powerful words. He tossed the flag into the fire, causing the flames to grow, showing the faces of the rest of the Spectral Knights. Each was armed and ready to fight.

"Today, we go to war with the world!"

XXXXXXXX

Shattered Mind: Control, complete.

Shattered Mind: Clarity, coming July 9th 2013.


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